He rode for Britain in the Olympic Games,[1] won the national road championship as an amateur and then a professional[2] and was the first foreigner to win the Étoile de Sud stage race in Belgium.

The following season Bell and track rider Piers Hewitt spent some time living and racing in France for UVCA Troyes.

Bell represented England when he competed in the road race at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane finishing 9th, the gold medal won by compatriot Malcolm Elliott.

Bell was not a climber – evidence his 110th place in the British National Hill Climb Championships, several years before the Olympics.

Brian Cookson, later president of the Union Cycliste Internationale, said: "I remember, as a commissaire, following Mark throughout his successful breakaway to win the national pro road race title in 1986, when he simply rode away from some of the greatest names in the sport.

He wrote on a web site in 2008: "After stopping racing, I was dogged with alcoholism which at present I am on top of, but I am partially temporarily disabled with DVT deep vein thrombosis damage to my lower right leg and foot and also have osteomyelitis damage to my left shoulder requiring a replacement shoulder operation.

His brother, Tony, also a former professional, said: "Mark battled with a lot of his own problems in his last years, but, when he was on top of things and doing well, he was a lovely man.

"[11] "Mark was one of the best roadmen that this country has so far produced, with many solid performances, and flashes of brilliance that saw outstanding results in international events at home and abroad. "