'King of the Roads' to be honoured in Ballymoney event

Motorcycling legend Joey Dunlop will be remembered and celebrated in a special event in Ballymoney, County Antrim, on Saturday.

The Joey 25 celebration is being held a quarter of a century after the 26-time Isle of Man TT winner was killed in an accident at a race in Estonia in July 2000.

The event will bring together famous riders like Carl Fogarty and Jonathan Rea who will ride many of Dunlop's original bikes around the town.

"We couldn't think of a better way to remember Joey than an event in his hometown," Joey's wife Linda said.

Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council are hosting the event to remember the man dubbed the 'King of the Roads', in conjunction with the Dunlop family.

His daughter Donna McLean and a son in law Michael McCammond will represent the family at a parade around the town.

"It makes it a little bit easier for us not doing it on the exact date of the anniversary because it is a private time for us," Joey's son Gary told BBC Radio Ulster's Your Place and Mine programme.

"It's been 25 years, it's still not easy. It's still not easy living with the name, I can assure you, but time is a little bit of a healer," he said.

"But the longer it goes on you come to realise how unique everything is and how special it is to a lot of the fans and at the end of the day, that's why we are happy to see it."

Liam Beckett, Dunlop's former mechanic and a close friend of the family, said he would never forget the day of the crash.

"Young Richard, Joey's youngest lad, was staying in my house that weekend. He would have been my son William's biggest friend and they still are to this day," he told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

"It was Donna who arrived at our house that morning in tears, Joey's daughter, to break the news to us.

"It's a shock I don't think I'll get over 'til the day I go but, it's great to see so many people rallying around to mark the 25th anniversary of his passing."

"It's great to see that Joey's memory lives on."

Brian Reid is a former double Formula Two world champion who raced against Dunlop and became his friend.

"He was a great ambassador for our sport and proved it worldwide," he told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

"I watched him before I started racing... but would never have dreamt that one day, I would be racing alongside him and, eventually, the odd time, beating him."

"It's great to see that everybody is getting involved in this wonderful event and to see all these bikes and getting a chance to ride one of them is going to be a great honour," he said.

The free public event will begin at 14:00 BST and finish at 22:00 and will show off Dunlop's original bikes as well as autograph signings and entertainment.

The parade of bikes will take place from 18:00 to 20:00, along North Road, High Street, Main Street, Seymour Street, Station and return via Townhead Street.

The roads will close to vehicles from 17:00 to 21:00.

A park and ride will operate from the Joey Dunlop Leisure Centre from 14:00 and the last return journey will be at 22:30.

The event will be live streamed via Greenlight Television's King of the Roads platform with the broadcast scheduled to begin at 18:00.

The Joey 25 Exhibition at Ballymoney Museum will also be open on Saturday.

It hosts a collection of artefacts and memorabilia such as Dunlop's restored and original motorcycles, rare photographs, racing leathers, trophies and personal items that mark Joey's remarkable career.

William Joseph Dunlop was born near Ballymoney on 25 February 1952 and died at the age of 48 on 2 July 2000 in Tallinn, Estonia.

Respected as the "King of the Roads", the sportsman achieved 26 Isle of Man TT wins, five Formula One World Championships, 13 North West 200 (NW200) victories and 24 Ulster Grand Prix triumphs.

He was honoured with an MBE in 1986 and an OBE in 1996 for his humanitarian work with children in Eastern Europe.

BBC Sport NI presenter Stephen Watson said Saturday was an "incredibly special event" to celebrate "one of Northern Ireland's greatest ever sporting ambassadors".

Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme, he added : "I don't think you'll ever see a collection of motorcycle riders together in the one place at the same time ever again because they're coming from all different disciplines of the sport and all different eras.

"And every single rider who is coming on Saturday will be riding one of Joey Dunlop's original machines."

The big names at the event include: World Superbike champions Carl Fogarty and Jonathan Rea; Grand Prix stars Ron Haslam, Jeremy McWilliams and Eugene Laverty; British champions Leon Haslam and Adrian Coates; World record holder Ryan Farquhar.

Double World Formula 2 Champion Brian Reid will also join Alan Irwin, Trevor Steele, Con Law, Raymond McCullough and Leslie McMaster