Cycling Ireland have named the 13 riders that will represent Ireland at the UCI World Road Championships in Virginia, USA later this month.
The squad, supported by the Armor-Lux clothing brand, includes six Juniors, two Under-23 riders and five Elite riders for the flagship end of season road racing event on the UCI calendar.
Fresh from some very impressive international performances on road and track at European and World Championship level recently, Donegal’s Ciara Doogan will be the first rider in action for Ireland when she takes on the world’s top junior riders in the 15km Time Trial on Monday, 21st. Ciara will be back in action for the 64.8km Junior World Championship Road Race on Friday 25th.
Ryan Mullen and Eddie Dunbar will be in the first day of action for the Irish squad when they compete in the Men’s Under 23 Time Trial over two laps of a technical 15km circuit in the centre of Richmond, Virginia on Monday, September 21st.
Dunbar will also be in action in the Under 23 Road Race on Friday 25th following the UCI’s announcement of additional quotas for this event.
Tipperary’s Michael O’Loughlin and Simon Tuomey of Cork will represent Ireland in the two-lap, 30km time trial on Tuesday 22nd and those two riders will join Adam Stenson of Dublin, Darragh O’Mahony of Cork and Tyrone’s Jake Gray in the Junior Men’s road race over 129.6km on Saturday 26th.
Reigning national time trial champion Siobhán Horgan returns to international duty when she rolls down the start ramp in the Women’s Elite World Championship Time Trial on the evening of Tuesday 22nd over the same 30km distance as the Junior and Under 23 men.
The Women’s Elite Road Race on the evening of Saturday 26th will feature multi-national road and time trial champion Olivia Dillon from Mayo and Cork’s 2014 National Road Race Champion Fiona Meade.
The final event of the week is the 259.2km Men’s Elite Road race on Sunday 27th where Sam Bennett and Conor Dunne will take on the challenge offered by 16 laps of a technical and in parts cobbled, 16.1km course in downtown Richmond.
Cycling Ireland Technical Director Brian Nugent:
“The World Championships is the most prestigious event of the road race season and comes at the end of a long, tough season. We have a large representation here at Junior level representing a solid growth in that area. We have been hit with injuries at Elite level but all the selected riders are in the best shape possible and I’m confident that they are all in a position to give a really good account of themselves.”
