Pat McQuaid
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Patrick "Pat" McQuaid (born 5 September 1949 in
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
, Ireland) is an
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
road racing cyclist. He had a strong amateur career and a brief professional period, before moving into race promotion and administration in Ireland and globally, serving four years as head of Irish cycling's governing body, and later two four-year terms as president of the world governing body, the
Union Cycliste Internationale The ''Union Cycliste Internationale'' (UCI; ; en, International Cycling Union) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues raci ...
(UCI), and three years as a member of the
International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
. McQuaid is also a qualified secondary school teacher.


Family background

McQuaid comes from a cycling family, with his father
Jim Jim or JIM may refer to: * Jim (given name), a given name * Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James * Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy * OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism * ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring * ''Jim ...
being a top amateur cyclist and later coach and official, and his
uncle An uncle is usually defined as a male relative who is a sibling of a parent or married to a sibling of a parent. Uncles who are related by birth are second-degree relatives. The female counterpart of an uncle is an aunt, and the reciprocal rela ...
a leader in national cycling organisation. His parents came from Dungannon in
County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...
,
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, where his father already raced. The McQuaids moved to Dublin due to the Troubles in Northern Ireland, which had more opportunities and which provided a better atmosphere for mixed couples (his mother was Protestant and his father Catholic), and settled in Dublin's northern suburbs. On Ballygall Road, in the locality of
Ballygall Ballygall () is a small suburban area located between Glasnevin and Finglas, on the northside of the city of Dublin, Ireland. It is also a townland divided between the civil parish of Finglas and that of Glasnevin. It was settled by Viki ...
between
Glasnevin Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...
and
Finglas Finglas (; ) is a northwestern outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It lies close to Junction 5 of the M50 motorway, and the N2 road. Nearby suburbs include Glasnevin and Ballymun; Dublin Airport is to the north. Finglas lies mainly in the posta ...
, Jim McQuaid ran a greengrocers and bakery, opposite a general store belonging to his brother, and the family lived above the shop. Jim (d. 1991) and Madge McQuaid raised 10 children, seven sons and three daughters. Pat McQuaid was the firstborn, in Dublin in 1949.
Who is Pat McQuaid and why is he running our sport?, Cycling Weekly, March 21, 2012, Edward Pickering (and Lionel Birnie), visited Sept 14 2018
All seven brothers raced. Paul McQuaid, Paul, Oliver and Darach McQuaid, the youngest of the ten, as well as cousin John McQuaid represented Ireland in world road championships and some in Olympic road racing. McQuaid himself was inspired by Shay Elliott, who visited his home when he was 12 or 13. Over the last twenty years there have been family-owned 'McQuaid cycles' bicycle shops in Dublin, beginning, and remaining, with one in Ballygall, while a brother,
Kieron McQuaid Kieron McQuaid (born 17 November 1950) is a former Irish cyclist. He competed in the individual road race and team time trial events at the 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad ...
, is the second largest importer of bikes in Ireland, and another, Paul, runs a bicycle rental shop at Ussher's Island. Two of Pat McQuaid's sons have long established business interests in the sport - David McQuaid owns DMC Sports and is the general manager of an international cycling team, while Andrew McQuaid is a lawyer, rider agent and a member of the three-person management team of Team Wiggins.


Cycling career

McQuaid raced from 1966 to 1982, starting as a junior and then riding nationally and internationally as a senior.


Amateur period

McQuaid rode for the small elite club founded in 1949 by his father and uncle, Emerald Cycling Club. The club was heavily involved in domestic road racing, international racing and cycling administration in Ireland. He also rode for the Clifton Cycling Club in
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...
, Yorkshire for some time in the late 1960s, and later still for a year in France. He was Irish national road champion in 1974. He won two of Ireland's three main road cycling events, the
Tour of Ireland The Tour of Ireland (Irish: Turas na hÉireann, known from 1985 to 1992 as the Nissan Classic) was a bicycle stage race held in August, which ran for 35 editions over a 56-year period. Irish rider Seán Kelly recorded the most wins, four. Th ...
twice, in 1975 and 1976, and the
Shay Elliott Memorial Race The Shay Elliott Memorial race is a one-day road cycling race held in spring in Ireland. It is run in honour of Ireland's first professional cyclist, Seamus Shay Elliott. The race was previously known as the ''Route de Chill Mhantain'' ("Wickl ...
.


South Africa visit

McQuaid, his brother Kieron, and Sean Kelly, went to South Africa to ride the Rapport Tour stage-race in preparation for the 1976 Olympic Games. They and others rode under false names because of an international ban on athletes competing in South Africa - a protest against
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
. The three Irish were detected, and suspended from racing for seven months by the national governing body, the Irish Cycling Federation. They were allowed back two months early, and were racing again, when the
International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
(IOC) banned them from the Olympics (this did not inhibit McQuaid from becoming a member of the IOC itself later).


Professional period

At the end of his career, he rode for the Viking Cycles professional team in Britain.


Educational career

McQuaid qualified as a teacher of physical education (PE) and mathematics at Strawberry Hill Teacher Training College (now St Mary's University), Strawberry Hill,
Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...
near London. After qualification he worked as a teacher for year in England, including a period teaching at a young offender institution in Kidderminster. During his later amateur cycling career, his two years with Viking, and for a time after, he worked as a PE and maths teacher, first at Greenhills College in
Walkinstown Walkinstown () is a suburb of Dublin in Ireland, six kilometres southwest of the city centre. It is surrounded by Drimnagh to the north, Crumlin to the east, Greenhills to the south, and Ballymount, Bluebell, and Clondalkin to the west. Its ...
, a suburb of Dublin, where he held a full-time temporary post for three years. With a young family, at the age of 26, he was offered an interview for a permanent post, but chose instead to leave the job and focus on racing, in anticipation of the following year's Montreal Olympic Games. He later returned to teaching, at Ballinteer Community School. He also worked part-time on PE at
Synge Street CBS Synge Street CBS (colloquially Synger) is a boys' non-fee-paying state school, under the auspices of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust, located in the  Dublin 8 area of Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1864 by Can ...
.


Cycling administration

Having taken at least one leave of absence, McQuaid moved fully into race organisation in 1985, and then later full-time sports administration. Highlights of this part of his career include:


Cycling in Ireland

*1983 - 1986 (Appointed) Irish National Team Director *1985 - 1993 Founding Director of the Nissan Tour of Ireland *1995 - 1999 Elected to the Board of the Irish Cycling Federation, directly to the post of President *1998 Director of the ''Grand Depart'' for the Tour de France in Dublin, Ireland In 1983, McQuaid discussed taking an Irish national race on to a "pro-am" basis (all Irish racing was amateur at the time) with Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche. The idea did not immediately develop, but in 1984, McQuaid persuaded Kelloggs to sponsor a ''criterium''-type road race, the Grand Prix of Ireland. After adding a similar event in Cork, McQuaid then began to try to organise a full-scale five-day stage race around Ireland, working with Alan Rushton, formerly of Kellogg's and Viking Cycles. In February 1985 they announced the first Nissan International Classic Tour of Ireland, to be headlined by Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche. McQuaid secured acceptance, with a favourable calendar "slot", 25–29 September, which allowed riders to use the race for preparatory purposes, from the UCI. McQuaid ran for the honorary post of President of the ICF in November 1994, losing heavily, but won a clear mandate in 1995, and was re-elected in 1997. In 1997, he was also elected to the Management Board of the international cycling federation, and due to the workload from this, and the coming of the Tour de France to Ireland in 1998, for the final year of his time as President, the role was, in effect, split, with a new position of Chairman temporarily created for Dermot Dignam to look after domestic duties, while McQuaid focused on international representation. In 1999, ICF rules did not allow for a third term, but he continued with the international governing body and race organisation.


International race organisation

*1993 - 1997 Director of the Tour of the Philippines *1993 - 2004 Director of the Tour of Langkawi (Malaysia)


International cycling administration

*1997 - 2005 (Elected) Member of the Board of Management of the
Union Cycliste Internationale The ''Union Cycliste Internationale'' (UCI; ; en, International Cycling Union) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues raci ...
(UCI) *1997 - 2005 (Appointed) President of the UCI Road Commission *2005 - 2013 (Elected, 2005 and 2009) President of the
Union Cycliste Internationale The ''Union Cycliste Internationale'' (UCI; ; en, International Cycling Union) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues raci ...
(UCI)


Successor to Hein Verbruggen

McQuaid put himself forward for election as UCI President in 2005, after 16 years of
Hein Verbruggen Hein Verbruggen (21 June 1941 – 14 June 2017) was a Dutch sports administrator who was president of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) from 1991 till 2005 and president of SportAccord from 2004 to 2013. He was an honorary member of the Inte ...
's leadership. His predecessor, also running, withdrew at the last minute, as did another candidate, and he won strongly (31-11), making him the first Irish person to head a major global sport federation ( Lord Killanin had previously chaired the Olympic co-ordinating body, the IOC, 1972-1980). Unlike the Irish cycling federation honorary presidency, the world role was a paid post, with a salary in excess of 360,000 euro or 500,000 dollars. When elected McQuaid put strong emphasis on three main areas: managing the professional side of cycling, so that riders' salaries were clean and assured, and teams had a viable business model, anti-doping measures, and development of cycling beyond the traditional core countries of Europe.


Achievements

During his time in office McQuaid extended anti-doping measures, including the ''biological passport'' of which the UCI was a pioneer, and addressed the dispute dating back to 2005 with the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO, organisers of the
Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
) bequeathed by his predecessor, and tensions with the organisers of the two other Grand Tours, continuing development of the professional tours, now working on a three-tier system; further problems arose with the AMO from time to time, but they did not become acute again during McQuaid's time in office. He also oversaw an expansion of paid cycling and broadcast activity, bringing new funding to the sport. He also promoted new races worldwide and worked to expand cycling activity in less active territories, for example negotiating with South Australian Premier Mike Rann to agree the first ProTour status event outside Europe, the Tour Down Under in Adelaide, Australia.


Dealings with Igor Makarov

In 2012 McQuaid has a number of discussions with a colleague on the UCI Management Committee, Igor Makarov, the billionaire head of the Russian cycling federation, and advocate of cycling in his homeland of
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
, about the development of cycling in the former Soviet space. He stated that as he was considering not running for office again in 2013, due to the stress of the role, including the Lance Armstrong affair, he was open to new work, and in July of that year he signed a contract for consultancy on "the future development of cycling in ...Turkmenistan, including the preparation of a bid to bring the UCI Road World Championships there in 2017." After a successful Olympic season, he four months later decided to seek to continue in office, and withdrew from the contract, and he clarified "I should stress that at no point did I carry out any work relating to this contract, nor did I ever receive any payment relating to this contract."
McQuaid divulges 2017 Worlds contract with Makarov, David Benson, March 6, 2015, Cycling News, visited Sept 14 2018
There was later tension when a cycling team promoted by Makarov was refused a licence by the independent Licensing Commission of the UCI. By mid-2013 Makarov was campaigning against McQuaid's re-election bid.
Cyclingnews.com, 14 September 2013, "McQuaid dossier compiled by investigators with US governmental agency experience, says Makarov" by Stephen Farrand and Barry Ryan, checked Sept 16 2018


Third term bid

On Friday 27 September 2013, he was a candidate for a third term as UCI President, with
Brian Cookson Michael Brian Cookson OBE (born 22 June 1951) is the former president of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), having been elected to the post in September 2013 at the 2013 UCI Road World Championships. Cookson previously served as presiden ...
, who had previously backed McQuaid, the only other candidate. He had originally been nominated by the cycling federations of his countries of origin, Ireland, and residence, Switzerland, but both nominations were withdrawn. The election proceeded based on two third country nominations, allowed under a then-new UCI rule. The election took place at the UCI Congress in
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...
, and Cookson prevailed by 24-18 votes. McQuaid had pledged not to launch a legal challenge should he be defeated, in particular with reference to allegations of that votes had been "bought" by a member of the Management Committee who wanted McQuaid removed. Cookson launched a review of some of McQuaid's and Verbruggen's policies and projects, such as the establishment of the Global Cycling Promotion company, which ran the new Tour of Beijing, the operation of the World Cycling Centre, and promised more proactive work on women's cycling. He also replaced the head of the UCI professional staff, the director-general, Christophe Hubschmid, with Martin Gibbs, a past UCI staffer who had managed his presidential campaign while Head of Policy and Legal Affairs of British Cycling.


Corruption allegations, lawsuits and vindication

For much of his term in office, McQuaid had to deal with allegations of doping in the sport, many dating back to previous decades, and especially around a handful of elite riders such as Lance Armstrong, Floyd Landis and Alberto Contador. As a result, he was also involved in defamation lawsuits, in Switzerland, against people who accused the UCI of corruption and insufficient action against the problem, most notably with regard to Armstrong. In September 2013, during the UCI presidential election campaign, elements of a dossier prepared for the UCI Committee of Management member Igor Makarov, and shared with the USA delegate, were leaked to the press - they included allegations that McQuaid had made a promotional deal with Makarov, that the UCI had sought payment to cover up
Alberto Contador Alberto Contador Velasco (; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice ( 2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the V ...
's 2010 positive drug test, and that McQuaid made private arrangements with
Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong ('' né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road racing cyclist. Regarded as a sports icon for winning the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 to 2005 after recovering fr ...
regarding drugs testing and race appearances. While Makarov refused to hand the dossier over to the UCI's Ethics Commission, requesting instead a one-time independent commission, it was eventually shown to McQuaid for comment, and sent to USADA (who took no formal action on it), as well as in some form being shared within the UCI Management Committee. McQuaid denied the negative allegations, as did Armstrong for his part, and McQuaid clarified that he had in 2012 signed a contract to advise on the development of the sport in Turkmenistan but had withdrawn from that contract before commencing work or receiving payment. The UCI set up the Cycling Independent Reform Committee (CIRC) to investigate various allegations to do with historical governance and handling of doping. The committee interviewed UCI staff, cyclists and support staff, as well as having access to the UCI computer servers, accounts, departments and email and phone records, including those of McQuaid, both personal and business, in order to fully carry out their investigations. In March 2015, the CIRC report was made public. It stated that some matters might have been better handled, expressing concern that Lance Armstrong had received flexible treatment on several occasions, including being allowed to return to competition for a key event, the Tour Down Under, 10 days earlier than a six-month deadline, while he was also being asked to join a race in Ireland. However, it concluded that there was no evidence to support allegations against McQuaid or his predecessor of bribery from Armstrong, corruption or collusion with doping.


Olympic movement and WADA roles

*2006 - 2014 (Elected) Member of the Board of Management of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF), Vice-President 2009-2014 *2009 - 2012 (Elected) Member of the Executive & Foundation Board of the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) *2009 - 2014 (Elected) Member of the Board of SportAccord, the association of sports federations and related bodies *2010 - 2013 (Elected) Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), appointed to two IOC Commissions, ''Women in Sport'', and ''Entourage'', 2010-2013


Later life

McQuaid left the UCI and cycling administration after failing to win re-election. He moved from Switzerland, and now lives in the south of France, running a holiday accommodation business.


Commentary on cycling and cycling administration

He has commented occasionally on his successors, and on ethics and doping. He has also spoken, somewhat harshly, on British cycling and especially Team Sky, for use of non-commercial and expensive bespoke bicycles, use of therapeutic usage exemptions (TUEs) and other matters.


Family life

After
Ballygall Ballygall () is a small suburban area located between Glasnevin and Finglas, on the northside of the city of Dublin, Ireland. It is also a townland divided between the civil parish of Finglas and that of Glasnevin. It was settled by Viki ...
, he lived in Ballinteer in the southern suburbs of Dublin, then
Roundwood Roundwood, historically known as Tóchar ( ga, an Tóchar , meaning 'the causeway'), is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It was listed as having a population of 948 in the 2016 census. Geography Roundwood is located where the R755 roa ...
in County Wicklow, and later in Switzerland, before settling in
Correns Correns (; oc, Correnç) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Its name in the Provençal language is ''Courrens''. The geographic position of the village is almost in the middl ...
,
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
, France in 2015. He first married a fellow teacher, and secondly Aileen McQuaid (née Carmody).


Awards

In March 2008, McQuaid was made a Commander in the Ivory Coast's Order of Sporting Merit (''Commandeur dans l'ordre du mérite sportif de Côte d'Ivoire'').


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McQuaid, Pat 1949 births Ballygall Irish male cyclists Sportspeople from Dublin (city) Alumni of St Mary's University, Twickenham Irish educators Irish cycling administrators Presidents of UCI Living people Staff of Synge Street school