Team ASEA in 2015 and this year ASEA-Wheelworx; the squad will no longer exist in 2017 as the two-year sponsorship from ASEA has ended. The riders in the team over the last two years won pretty much everything there was to win - and it wasn't just the so-called big names like McCrystal and Shaw. Here, Chris Reilly had his moment in Cork last year when he won the Dan O'Donovan Memorial (Photo: DC Images)
One of the country’s most successful teams in recent years, Team ASEA-Wheelworx, will not be in the domestic peloton in 2017 after the two-year project has come to an end.
It means the likes of top domestic road men Bryan McCrystal, Mark Dowling, Chris Reilly, Adam Armstrong and Ali MacAuley will be joining new squads in 2017.
It was never the intention of ASEA to extend their sponsorship of the team, though stickybottle understands other sponsors may come in to fund a team, albeit under a different name.
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In their short spell as a racing team they made an extraordinary impact, winning the national championships last year through Damien Shaw who has since gone onto the Continental ranks with An Post Chain Reaction.
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Mark Dowling won many a race in 2016 after being brought into the team at late notice this year. He was also crowned the National Hill Climb Champion and National Criterium Champion.
In Bryan McCrystal they had one of the country’s best performers, as winning the Irish duathlon championships, a host of one-day races and his An Post Rás performances would attest.
They had multiple county rider prizes in the Rás this year and last and won the national series last year through McCrystal.
His sister Eve was runner-up twice in the national road and time-trial championships.
She wrote her name into the history books in Brazil this year when she and Katie George Dunlevy took gold at the Paralympics.
This year, a few younger guns raced with the team including Conor McCann, Stephen Shanahan, Declan Mulholland and Thomas Fallon.
We will bring you news of where the riders intend to go next year as soon as we know.
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