By Shane Stokes
Irish junior road race and time trial champion
Darren Rafferty is hoping that a recent stint of altitude training in Spain
will see him in strong form in key upcoming events with the first of those, the
Veenendaal-Veenendaal Classic, taking place on Saturday.
The first-year under 23 rider will square up
against some of the world’s biggest pro teams in the 1.1-ranked Dutch event. He
and his Hagens Berman Axeon team will face off against riders representing
WorldTour squads Intermarché Wanty Gobert Matériaux, Jumbo-Visma, Team
BikeExchange-Jayco, Lotto Soudal and Team DSM.
Intermarché Wanty Gobert Matériaux has Scheldeprijs
champion Alexander Kristoff in its team and Bike Exchange counting on the
sprinting abilities of recent Tour de Hongrie stage winner Dylan Groenewegen.
Ranked 1.1 on the UCI calendar, the
Veenendaal-Veenendaal Classic is the highest-ranked event thus far this year
for Rafferty.
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Rafferty said that the course profile isn’t ideal
for him, but that the upcoming races in Italy the following weekend should be
more to his liking.
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“This weekend is pan flat in the Netherlands, so it
will be the option of get myself in the break or trying to help out for the
sprint,” he told stickybottle this week. “Next weekend should be a fairly free
role, I hope.”
He will compete in the 1.2-ranked Strade Bianche di
Romagna on Saturday week and then the Under 23 Coppa della Pace on the
following day. All going to plan, the time spent in Spain should have boosted
his form. “I felt the altitude training was a great experience personally,” he
said.
Rafferty has had a solid showing in his first
season as an under 23 rider. He has steadily gained experience competing in a
number of 1.2 and 2.2-ranked events, and was eighth on a stage of Le Triptyque
des Monts et Châteaux in Belgium in early April.
He then put in a strong ride supporting his team in
the Under 23 Liège-Bastogne-Liège on April 16th, riding at the front towards
the finale and finishing as part of the 26-man peloton which sprinted in eight
seconds behind the seven leading riders.
The Dungannon competitor had a stream of successes
last season, including several victories in France. The first year as an under
23 is always a big step up for riders but he has been dealing well with the transition.
Rafferty is one of Ireland’s top young cycling
talents. His prospects of reaching the WorldTour are boosted by his work with
the Hagens Berman Axeon team. It is a highly-regarded youth squad and has
helped pave the way for a host of successful careers, including that of
Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar.
