Charlie Prendergast in the colours of his new French team Hennebont Cyclisme. He has begun his stint with the squad, hitting the deck in his opening race and being force to abandon.
By Brian Canty
Charlie Prendergast did not get his racing season abroad off to the start he would have wished for after he crashed in the opening stage of the Tour de Pays de Lesneven in France and was forced to retire.
The former national junior road race champion hit the deck after 40 kilometres when a spill in front of him forced him to sharply correct his line. And though he avoided coming down on the road, the speed at which he hit the ditch caused some knee damage.
The team’s doctor made the decision to withdraw him from the race for fear of exacerbating the injury, which is believed to be tendon-related.
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The Co Mayo rider was due to get a second opinion to determine the extent of the injury.
Prendergast’s Hennebont Cyclisme team won the morning time-trial of the one-day, two-stage event.
They also won the afternoon stage 2 through Erwen Brenterch, who came in on his own some 11 seconds ahead of two chasers.
Prendergast has now completed his university studies and after remaining in Ireland to race in recent years because of those college commitments as many of his peers chased the European dream, he is hopeful of a good season that would see him develop further towards challenging for some big honours both at home and abroad.
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