Cycling Ireland has confirmed a number of changes for the domestic road racing scene next year, when some of the road races at the National Championships will be longer. A new U23 women’s title race will also be created, which should be a big boost for younger riders.
Furthermore, junior cyclists will no longer be restricted in their gear selection. That move will likely have a significant impact on racing in Ireland as juniors compete against other, elite, categories on the domestic scene and will no longer be restricted.
“In line with the changes being introduced by the UCI for 2023, Cycling Ireland will follow these regulations and remove junior gear restrictions for road races from the 2023 road season,” Cycling Ireland said of the move that will see juniors ride whatever gears they choose.
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“This decision from the UCI has been taken following a number of years of review and we must be aligned, this will allow our juniors to be on a ‘level playing field’ with all other nations should they wish to, or be selected to race abroad from next season.”
On the women’s scene, the distance of the road race at the National Road Championships is set to be lengthened, which should make for a much hard title race. And within that race, the U23 riders will compete for an Irish title in their category, in the same way the U23 men’s title race is held within the elite men’s road race.
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The increase in distance in the women’s road race at the nationals will see the event increased from 80-100km at present to 100-120km in the future. This decision was made following a request from Cycling Ireland’s high performance unit and head coach.
“This distance was lower in the past as the championship also included masters women, but now with the separation of the women’s masters road race championship, as a standalone event, it allows us to increase the distance to closer align with the elite racing distance in Europe,” Cycling Ireland said.
The decision by Cycling Ireland’s ‘technical working group’ to create the new U23 women’s national road race title race came as after a request from the Women’s Commission.
The U23 category race was held as a demonstration event this year – meaning it was not for a national title. Having reviewed that trial, and also the number of female riders moving into the U23 ranks in 2023, the decision was made to create the new title race.
Going forward, once six U23s ride the race, the gold, silver and bronze medals will be on offer. There will also be the opportunity for combined team medals once three Irish teams have entered.
