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| Sean McKenna, Aquablue |
With the full contingent of fifteen international teams announced in recent weeks, the organisers of the An Post Rás today announced the nineteen Irish domestic teams who will square up against their overseas competitors in this month’s race.
Many of Ireland’s top home-based riders will compete in the 2.2-ranked international event, pitching their strength against those of the international riders. They will aim to show that domestic riders can race competitively and aggressively despite having less experience of racing abroad.
Recent Tour of Ulster winner Mark Dowling will lead a strong Meath DID Electrical team and will seek to build on the form which earned him the stage race title and other strong results throughout the season.
Eoin Morton, who briefly led the Tour of Ulster race and finished second overall, will spearhead the Dublin UCD squad, while stage winners Damien Shaw and Roger Aiken will head to the An Post Rás with big aspirations wearing the Louth Team Asea jersey.
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| Eoin Morton, UCD |
Team-mate Brian McCrystal has also been in strong form this season and will animate the eight day event.
Cork Aquablue will field another strong line-up, with Kerry Group Rás Mumhan winner Sean McKenna and former An Post-Chain Reaction Sean Kelly rider Ronan McLaughlin two of the five.
Ned Flanagan Memorial winner Robin Kelly has been in good form this year and will be part of the Mayo Coleman Electronics TKE team. Tour of the North stage winner David Watson, currently fourth behind Paidi O’Brien, McKenna and Morton in the Cycling Ireland rider rankings, will represent Down North Graham Powerhouse Sport, while Drumm Cup winner Simon Ryan will be part of the Limerick Mego RT squad.
An Post Rás race director Tony Campbell has long regarded the domestic riders as being an essential part of the race, as did his predecessor Dermot Dignam.
“They are so important to the An Post Rás,” he states. “The Rás was built on the county riders and we don’t want that format to change. I know that things are progressing and sport is changing every day, but it is important to us to have the county riders racing for eight days. And long may that last”.
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| Mark Dowling, DID Electrical |
“It is great to get the foreign riders for obvious reasons, but the basis of the race is the county riders.”
Also amongst those Campbell refers to are the riders of the Antrim Phoenix, Cavan Velo Café Magasin, Cork Strata3/Velorevolution RT, Down Newry Wheelers, Dublin Orwell Wheelers, Dublin South Eurocycles, Dublin Wheelworx, Dublin Lucan Stagg Cycles, Dublin Bikeworx, Mayo.ie, Meath Martin Donnelly/Fast Shipping and Waterford Dungarvan Minnies’ squads.
With those and the others in mind, he and route designer Stephen O’Sullivan came up with a flatter, faster course this year. The idea is to ensure a wide open contest and to keep riders in contention as long as possible, leading to a more suspense filled contest.
However, he makes clear that it will be by no means a walk in the park.
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| Ronan McLaughlin, Aquablue |
“I hope the route will suit the county riders, but they are going to have to ride very, very hard,” he says. “I know the route doesn’t sound severe, but it is. It is very rolling and the county riders will have to be on their best. An awful lot of the race will depend on the wind and the weather.”
The 2015 An Post Rás will begin in Dunboyne next Sunday week, May 17th, and will feature stage finishes in Carlow, Tipperary, Bearna, Newport, Ballina, Ballinamore, Drogheda and Skerries.
It will total almost 1,200 kilometres in length and will include 21 categorised climbs plus that slew of international and domestic teams.
Meanwhile, An Post-Chain Reaction Sean Kelly Team are in action today, on stage three at the Tour d’Azerbaidjan (2.1). The race, which began on Wednesday (6th May) in the capital, Baku, will finish on Sunday (10th May) and it will be the final big event for the Irish outfit ahead of the An Post Rás.
For More Information Contact:
David Foster
David.foster@ogilvy.com
+ 353 1 669 0218
