Ireland’s Nicolas Roche (left) and Dan Martin (right, at front) in the Worlds in Valkenburg on Sunday (Photo: Colm Watson/VC Glendale)
By Brian Canty
Dan Martin has said he did all he possibly could to try and place at the World Championships at the weekend in Valkenburg, but conceded a lack of racing in the lead-up to the event may have hampered his chances.
“I couldn’t have done any better,” he said.
“My legs just gave way on the steep part of the Cauberg. All day I was having trouble trying to get up the steep part of the climb. I really just stopped dead on it and I rode back onto the back of Nico’s group (at the finish). We were literally just 20 metres off the back of the (peloton) all the way to the finish and all we needed was that front group to hesitate for two seconds and I would have possibly been in the sprint and possibly could have been in the top 20 or 15. But I just didn’t have the legs on the steep part.”
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“I was just lacking a little bit of racing. I’ve done very little racing since the Tour (de France) and all the other races have been long so I was missing that preparation for the Worlds. I lacked a little bit of sharpness, a bit of race sharpness, but I actually feel better since the race.”
Despite that, he was still happy and is already counting down the days until next year where he declared the race will be one of his top priorities when it is run in Florence.
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“Next year it will be very much one of my main goals. This year the course was okay for me but it was just a practice run for next year and we learnt a lot of lessons. Next year I’ll definitely be going there to try and podium because it’s on a course that definitely suits me better.”
Like team-mate Ronan McLaughlin, the Girona-based professional was keen to stress his gratitude to the travelling Irish support who made his job easier.
“It’s incredible” he lauded.
“The number of people who come out to support is surprising every year and it did us proud to be able to show the jersey at the front and actually be there in the final. With two kilometres to go we had a chance of being World Champions. That’s great for everybody to see and it’s great that they come over and see us race. The support really just keeps us going and it’s good to know they’re around the town all week. Even when we were out training on the course they give us a cheer and it’s nice to hear.”
Speaking of McLaughlin, who rode very well in the biggest race of his life, Martin had this to say: “He helped me a lot. He took my clothes, got bottles, and was helping me with position as well. It was kind of sketchy actually, I crashed once and he waited for me there on the circuit just before the big climb. I didn’t touch the floor and it was a really slow crash, I just landed on my feet but I lost position and he helped me back up. Obviously he could have got in the breakaway and went for glory that way, but he thought about the team’s chances and my chances.”
Now heading into October, Martin is still not done and is targeting this Saturday’s Tour of Lombardy, a race he regrets not winning last year when he was 2nd.
“Yeah, I like making (the season) long because it makes the winter shorter. I have some pretty good form now so hopefully I can get a big result in Lombardy. There are a lot of guys going well again though. Gilbert has obviously got top form and Nibali; then you’ve got Contador and Rodriguez coming out of the Vuelta so I think it’s going to be a very hard race and the weather isn’t looking too good at the moment either so we’ll have to see.”
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