Former Junior World RR Champion, Mark Scanlon, was amongst those who lined up at the Junior Tour Ulster Sportive at the weekend. The Sligoman is on the list of illustrious winners of the Junior Tour of Ireland, having taken victory in 1998, the same year that he would win the World Championships in the Netherlands.

It seems that he was showing some pretty good form in an event which included the likes of Rás winners David McCann and Clemens Fankhauser, Peter Hawkins, Joe Barr, Bryan McCrystal and Damien Shaw, amongst others. With a lot of strong riders, the pace was inevitably high, but Scanlon was said to have been fairly comfortable in the group.

Scanlon turned professional with AG2r a few years after his Worlds win, and notched up a number of good wins for the French team. Scanlon also won the Irish Championships twice. He went on to take part in and finish the 2004 Tour de France.

However, in 2007, he walked away from the sport citing a number of reasons for retirement, so it’s good to see him back enjoying the bike again.

Mark Scanlon (right) in the Ulster Junior Tour Sportive
Mark Scanlon (right) in the Ulster Junior Tour Sportive

Photo from Gordon Parker (Junior Tour Ulster Sportive Facebook page)

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