Clodagh Finn: Meet Millie Robinson, the Mayo cyclist who won the first women's Tour de France in 1955

As the Tour de France Femmes begins, Clodagh Finn revisits the extraordinary yet overlooked story of Mayo cycling pioneer Millie Robinson

The 1955 Tour de France Féminin. From left: Lydia Haritonides, Marie-Jeanne Donabedian, Mayo-born Millie Robinson, Lyli Herse (in race leader's white jersey) and Jacqueline Hoyau. Pictures courtesy of the 1955 winter edition of JB Wadley's Coureur magazine

Sat, 01 Aug, 2026 - 06:00

Clodagh Finn

Clodagh Finn is a journalist, writer and collector of stories. Her recent book, The Irish in the Resistance, co-authored with John Morgan, shines a light on the forgotten contributions of the Irish who resisted Hitler during WW2.

As the Tour de France Femmes gets under way today, I wonder how many people can name the Irish woman who won the tour’s first stage race for women in 1955?

She was from Mayo, a county still basking in the long-awaited (and so well-deserved) after-glow of All-Ireland victory. The memory of the last time the Sam Maguire went west, 75 years ago, is etched in local consciousness, yet a remarkable international win by a Ballina cyclist just a few years later remains little-known.