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ROUGH RIDER

By Adrian MCCARTHY

WILDFIRE FILMS AND TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS LTD - as PROD

Documentary - Production 2013

One man’s quest to find honesty and hope inside the most physically and mentally demanding race on the planet, the Tour de France

- Year of production
- 2013
- Genres
- Documentary
- Countries
- IRELAND
- Languages
- ENGLISH
- Budget
- 0.3 - 0.6 M$
- Duration
- 80 mn
- Director(s)
- Adrian MCCARTHY
- Producer(s)
- Martha O'NEILL (Wildfire Films), Tony WHELAN (Ergo Films)
- Synopsis
- The most spectacular sporting event in the world in 2013 will take place this July, when, for twenty-one days, the 100th Tour de France sees 180 cyclists pedal over 3,000km around the French countryside. This grueling event will be cheered on by huge roadside crowds and accompanied by the mighty caravan of global media.
  Within that media scrum sits one of the worlds most cantankerous sports journalists. Paul Kimmage has spent the last 22 years fighting to rid his most beautiful sport of doping. The former professional cyclist is detested by many in the sport, amongst them Lance Armstrong, fellow journalists, current Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins and heads of the world cycling governing body.
  Since September 2012, we have been filming with Paul Kimmage and witnessed some extraordinary events unfolding including the downfall of Lance Armstrong and Kimmage’s personal legal battles against the UCI, the governing body of world cycling. This controversial journalist has become a global figure in the fight against doping and has a reputation for speaking his mind.
  Throughout the twenty-one days of the grueling Tour de France, we travel with working journalist Paul Kimmage in his caravan, with his wife at the wheel, giving us a unique insight into the fascinating, beautiful and often shocking world of professional cycling. Kimmage is in search of answers to see if it is possible to rid his sport of a doping culture which has undermined its integrity.
  Right now there is no sport with a bigger credibility fight on its hands than cycling, and no event where genuine romance coexists so uncomfortably with hideous reality than the Tour de France. Told against the backdrop of the centenary Tour, and through the eyes of one of the most aggravated whistleblowers in sports journalism, we are going on a journey that could prove to be one of the most fascinating sports films of our time.
- Beginning of shooting
- Oct 01, 2012