Tom Linton

Tom Linton was one of four brothers, three of whom - Tom, Arthur and Sam - all became racing cyclists. In the latter half of the 20th century, Tom spent a lot of time between racing in England and France, and at Paris in 1896, broke all previous world records from one fifth of a mile and upwards, when he became the first man to cover 30 miles in one hour. Later in the year, he took the record to beyond 31 miles and then, at Crystal Palace, he set world records at three, five, seven and eight miles. He also held the world 10-mile record, and in 1899 finished second in Paris-Dijon race behind fellow Briton Albert Walters. Tom’s brother Arthur won the 1896 Paris-Bordeaux race, but sadly, just two months later he died from typhoid poisoning. In his memory, the inaugural Linton memorial race was held in front of 10,000 people at Cardiff, and appropriately was won by Tom. After his cycling days, Tom Linton became a Paris hotelier but, like his brother Arthur, he too died of typhoid poisoning at a young age.