Ireland’s Dan Martin and Nicolas Roche will be amongst the first of the Irish Olympic team in action as they line up in the Men’s Road Race in Rio tomorrow. The duo will compete in the 237.5km road race in Fort Copacabana starting at 13.30 Irish time; with the race expected to finish at approximately 19.10.
The pair have both been performing well this year, with Martin finishing 9th in the Tour de France, and Roche 9th in the Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian last weekend.
The Olympic circuit is a route that should suit Martin in particular having taken the win in similarly hilly races such as Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour of Lombardy.
Martin is amongst the favourites for the race with many bookmakers, alongside the likes of Alejandro Valverde (ESP), Vincenzo Nibali (ITA), Chris Froome (GBR) and his trade team-mate Julian Alaphilippe (FRA).
The 237.5km road race is considered by many as having the toughest Olympic parcours in many years, and will likely result in a war of attrition for the riders. Starting in Fort Copacabana on the coast the riders take in two separate circuits before finishing back in Fort Copacabana.
The first circuit includes the climb of Grumari – a 1.2 kilometre long climb at 7% with a maximum gain is 13%. Next comes the Grota Funda, a climb of 2.1 kilometres at 4.5%.
Heading back to the city a second hilly circuit of 15 kilometres welcomes the riders which features the 8.5 kilometre climb of Vista Chinesa with a steepest section of 11.9%.
Following the second circuit, the riders will have 17 kilometres from the summit back to the finish at Copacabana.
