Sam Bennett has already taken a stage at the Tour of Oman; could he grab a Belgian semi classic this Sunday?
By Brian Canty
Ireland will be represented by no fewer than five riders in this Sunday’s Belgian semi classic Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
Sam Bennett (Bora-Argon 18), Matt Brammeier (MTN-Quebeka), Sean Downey, Conor Dunne (both An Post Chainreaction) and Connor McConvey (3M Cycling Team) are all on the start-list for the 196km event.
The UCI 1.1-ranked race is always a big one on the professional scene as it’s the traditional season opener in the sport’s heartland, with huge crowds usually coming out to support it.
However, it’s an extremely difficult one to predict as bad weather has often hit the race.
There are also a number of stinging climbs to whittle down the peloton by the finish - leaving only the strongest.
Advertisement
Ireland will boast a very significant presence at the Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne classic in Belgium on Sunday, in terms of both numbers and quality. Connor McConvey, above, will be riding for his new 3M Continental-ranked team.
As recently as 2013 the race had to be cancelled on account of freezing temperatures while in 2010 it was shortened by 20km because of a fallen tree and only 26 of the 195 started riders finished.
Sam Bennett’s Bora-Argon 18 team has not gone for its strongest line-up.
But there is still some real quality in their line-up so it will be interesting to see how the Irishman goes after difficult back-to-back stage races in Qatar and Oman.
With the team having secured a wildcard entry for the Tour of Flanders in April it sees Sunday’s outing as an ideal opportunity to try out some potential starters for Flanders.
An Post Chainreaction’s Sean Downey gets his first start of the season and he knows survival will be the name of the game having been committed to the track for much of the winter.
Related News
Sean Downey will look to hit the ground running as he moves back into the road racing scene from the national track set-up.
The Banbridge man was on a new level last year and a good finish on Sunday is possible once he has his road legs back on after riding the track with the Irish team of late.
His team mate Conor Dunne, 3M’s Conor McConvey and MTN-Quebeka man Matt Brammeier will look to get stuck in right from the start.
McConvey is starting a new chapter in his career with the Belgian-registered Continental team and he will want to lay down a marker as he hits a crucial stage in his career.
The same goes for four-time national road race champion Brammeier.
He has landed a two-year deal with his new ProContinental squad and it is in these types of races that Brammeier can make a very strong contribution to his team’s efforts to secure victories.
Sunday's encounter should be right up Brammeier's alley. He has already shown some good form for MTN-Quebeka.
Brammeier has already shown some good form this season, making the front group in the Clasica Almeria last week.
Some of the riders the Irish will face this weekend include Alexander Kristoff (Katusha), Bradley Wiggins and Ian Stannard (both Team Sky), Lars Bak (Lotto-Soudal), Philippe Gilbert and Greg
Van Avermaet (both BMC Racing Team), Edward Theuns (Topsport Vlaanderen) and Sep Vanmarcke (LottoNL-Jumbo).
The race will be televised live on Eurosport 2 from 3pm on Sunday.
Topics
