Oisin O'Callaghan (The YT Mob) and Ronan Dunne (Continental Nukeproof Factory Racing) reigned supreme in the international downhill world last weekend when they were 1st and 2nd in the latest round of the UCI World Cup in Snowshoe, West Virginia.
And now the incredible 1-2 by the Irish riders will be celebrated with a very rare event for any cycling discipline in Ireland; a proper homecoming.
Niall Davis at biking.ie has taken the initiative on this and he's organising the event for O'Callaghan and Dunne next Monday at the Sugar Club, on Leeson St Lower in Dublin's south inner city. There's an entry fee - but it's just €7 - and all of the takings are going to cover the costs of the venue and the event.
This is a not for profit event being held simply to celebrate O'Callaghan and Dunne and to welcome them home. Hopefully, this will be just the first of many such homecomings and that other similar events will be held for our riders - across the disciplines - in the years ahead.
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Right now, O'Callaghan and Dunne are the men of the moment and they'll be on hand to meet people at the event next Monday evening. They'll also do a question and answers session, so we'll get to know them a bit better and hear about their incredible rides in the US last weekend and the ups and downs of their careers so far.
The event is scheduled to run from 7pm to 11pm but if you're bringing young kids, and you don't want to stay too late, you can just make tracks a little early. The tickets are now on sale on EventBrite and you can purchase them by following this link. Spaces are limited, so get in quick.
"Let's celebrate this incredible achievement of two of Ireland's youngest, brightest DH MTB stars," the message on the ticket sales page says about last weekend's "historic 1-2 for Ireland".
"The first UCI elite men's DH World Cup win by an Irishman, Oisin O'Callaghan, and an amazing 2nd place for Ronan Dunne. Come celebrate this huge milestone for Irish mountain biking. We'll have a live Q&A with Oisin and Ronan, autograph signing and photo ops. Relive history with race reruns and helmet cam footage on the big screen."
It sounds like a winner, and well done to Niall Davis for taking the opportunity to put a proper homecoming in place for the two lads.
