A 'selfie', taken by a Fermoy cyclist with Marcel Kittel the stage winner of the Giro d’Italia in Dublin on Sunday, has caused huge hype and grief for 19 year old Fermoy man, David McCarthy.

David was plunged into the social media spotlight having tweeted a picture showing himself with Kittel who was in a collapsed state from exhaustion having passed the finish line.

David, who is a lover of cycling himself, apologised to Marcel Kittel and anyone else he may have offended because of the incident which he himself felt was 'harmless' while his father Charlie said the abuse his son got was 'a disgrace'.

David put the picture up on Instagram on Sunday and all was fine until a photo, taken by a Belgian company, was posted showing him taking the selfie. It immediately went viral and what followed was a barrage of calls and tweets, both abusive and complimentary, 'about 50/50' he said.

David's father Charlie, told The Avondhu on Wednesday said: "I feel sad that someone who idolises the sport of cycling, should get such abuse." He also warned of the dangers of social media and how lethal it can be when used in this way.

"It's not because he's my son, but all David did wrong was take a picture of one of his heroes in the sport that he idolises. The abuse was a disgrace and unwarranted and is something that could well put a young lad off the sport for life. David is devastated over it but he will be fine. Thankfully, our family have received huge support from all over the country," Charlie said.

Those who have come to David's support includes Irish cycling star, Nicholas Roche who vouched for David's good name in a tweet to Marcel Kittel.

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