Felix English has endured a couple of very rough seasons, with a wrist injury affecting his training and racing. However, with that all but sorted he's been called back into the Irish track squad after a four-year absence. He was shaping up very nicely on the UK pro crit scene before his problems began; above winning the Milk Race criterium two years ago.
By Brian Canty
Former Irish junior and U23 international Felix English has been brought into the national track squad to boost the elite setup.
The UK-based Irishman is the latest to be called up to a training camp in Majorca by head coach Brian Nugent.
And should things go well for English he will be on the UCI World Cup track squad for the winter months.
English's inclusion follows Marc Potts' promotion after the An Post Rás. He is currently in Majorca with the rest of the squad.
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Potts did not take long to find his feet in Spain when he won a road race on the island at the weekend, albeit with the help of fellow track rider Martyn Irvine and Daniel Stewart.
It's believed English and Potts are just two riders Cycling Ireland will be bringing in for training camps and regular assessment.
The national federation confirmed to stickybottle there would be more names added in the coming months, though did not specify whether that would be in the junior, U23 or elite ranks.
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English is 23 years old in October but is overaged for the espoir category.
He has not ridden the track for four years so his inclusion is perhaps a little surprising to some.
However, he has a fine pedigree on the boards and has competed in several UCI World Cup track meets in the past as a first year U23 rider.
He also rode the junior European track championships but never qualified for the World Championships.
His season so far has been a bit of a nightmare with a niggling wrist injury ruling him out of many races up until now after first breaking it last year.
The national championships in Omagh on Sunday week will also have to be scrapped as he believes he does not have enough training done to be competitive but he should be back on the road before the season is out.
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