Michael O'Loughlin will go to the line as hot favourite to take the junior time trial crown at the national championships. The vets' title will also be decided tomorrow, with A3 and junior road crowns to be contested on Sunday (Photo: Andréa Quémener)
Greg Swinand is favourite to claim his fourth national veteran’s time-trial title when he goes to the line for the decider in Cong, Co Mayo, tomorrow.
The Aquablue man was a winner in 2011, 2013 and 2014; demolishing the field in Co Cork 12 months ago.
But on a relatively short course of 23 kilometres this time around and against a strong start-list he will know better than to be complacent in his Masters 40 event.
Of the challengers, John Heverin is the man lost likely to get the better of Swinand.
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The Clann Eireann CC rider was the last man to beat him in the title decider, though that was back in 2012.
Chris Troy (Castlebar CC) is another strong tester and he will definitely be hunting for a medal of some colour.
He was fourth last year in Cork and will be keen to improve on that on roads he knows well.
There is 108 metres of climbing on the course and on such a short race route - 17 kilometres shorter than last year - that could be decisive.
In the Masters 50 event, John Madden (Dig Deep Coaching) is hard to look beyond.
In the Masters 60, Kevin O’Leary (St Finbarr’s) will be going all out to make it a road and time-trial double.
The junior men’s event should be a cracking affair and with twice as many riders as last year it should be quite competitive.
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Michael O’Loughlin (NRPT-Magnet.ie) is the most likely to win but can expect a stiff challenge from around half a dozen others.
Fellow Irish international Simon Tuomey (Cork Giant) clocked a better time than him at the European Championships in Estonia recently.
However, O’Loughlin will need no telling his own time was well below his best.
The fact he was committed to the European Track Championships prior to Estonia certainly did him no favours in preparing for the road showdown.
Darragh O’Mahony (O’Leary’s Stone Kanturk) was the best Irish finisher in the road race in Estonia but how much time-trial work he has done this year is unknown.
But on a short lumpy course he should go well and will be there or thereabouts.
Caimin Muldoon and Adam Stenson (both NRPT-Magnet.ie) and Conn McDunphy (Lucan CRC) are the others most likely to challenge.
And with places on offer for the World Road Championships next month in the US, all of the juniors will be keen to impress.
The junior women’s race is on the schedule this weekend; a positive development in itself as it was not held 12 months ago.
Josie Knight is absent and it looks like a showdown between Emily Birchall (NRPT-Magnet.ie), Ciara Doogan (Errigal CC) and Naoise Sheridan (Orwell Wheelers), though Jennifer Neenan (NRPT-Magnet.ie) could spring a surprise.
The junior and A3 road race titles will be decided on Sunday, with the vets’ road race championships having already been held in conjunction with the elite races in Omagh in June.
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