Sean Downey has gotten the nod for the Rás. But other Irish riders in the An Post-Chainreaction team who anticipated joining him have not been named for the Irish eight-day.
The An Post-Chainreaction team has departed from its usual practice of selecting a mainly Irish line-up for the An Post Rás which begins in Dunboyne, Co Meath, this Sunday.
While there are places for U23 national champion Jack Wilson and the in-form Rás veteran Sean Downey, the other Irish men on the Belgian-based squad have not been named for the trip to Ireland.
Last year’s stage 1 winner and first yellow jersey of the race, Conor Dunne will not ride nor will ace time trial riders and strong men Marcus Christie and Ryan Mullen.
Instead, the three remaining places go to Irish-born Australian international Robert Jon McCarthy, promising British rider Owain Doull and Kiwi speedster Shane Archbold.
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Ryan Mullen last month qualified the U23 national team for the road race at the World Championships in September with a great Nations Cup ride in Holland. But he will miss next week's Rás.
Ryan Mullen focussed on the track in the early part of the year and scored an incredible 4th place in the individual pursuit at the elite World Championships and is still aged 19 years.
His relative youth and the fact the road has not been his main focus of recent months could perhaps explain his non-selection, though 6th in the ZLM Tour Nations Cup in Holland last month suggests he has found his road legs.
Dunne’s and Christie’s absences are more surprising as is the fact the squad has opted to select just two Irish men from a possible five.
Manager Kurt Bogaerts made no reference to the omitted riders in a statement announcing the selection today. Instead, he said he believes he has named a line-up that is capable of riding for the overall and also for stage wins.
Downey appears to have come up a level this year and while a big result has eluded him to date in 2014 his results suggest a man who can pull a big one out of the bag soon if things go his way.
He has just finished the Tour d’Azerbaijan, where he was 48th overall, but has scored a number of top 20 results in UCI-graded races in recent months.
These include the GP Izola in Slovenia (UCI 1.1) back in February where he was 18th, the Omloop van het Waasland (1.2) where he was 12th in March and the Tour de Normandie in France, also in March, where he was 14th on a stage.
He followed that up with 17th in the Rund um Koln (1.1) in Germany last month which was won by former An Post-Chainreaction team mate Sam Bennett.
Bogaerts believes the former Banbridge CC man has stepped up this year.
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“I believe Downey is showing good progress and is at a higher level to last year,” he said.
“Wilson had a tough start to the season, but his form is building well and his participation in the Tour of Azerbaijan will see him start the An Post Rás in good condition.”
He believes McCarthy’s victory on a stage of the Herald Sun Tour in February reflected very good form before disaster struck.
“He broke his hand at the start of his time with us and that made things tough, but he showed a lot of character in getting back on the bike soon afterwards and is improving every day.
“Doull was the points winner last year and is a very regular rider. He’s in good shape this year and I think he can do well. So too Archbold, who won a stage in the past and who has been riding very well lately.
“The riders I have selected should ride well on the course. We will start with the aim of winning stages. I think we have guys who can also take the overall, but things need to fall into place for that to happen.
“I’m not going to say which guys I think can ride for general classification as then they’ll simply be marked by the other teams, but I know who they are.
“I have looked at the route and I think it is a tougher one than last year. You have three category one climbs close to the finale of stages, and so I don’t think we will have many bunch sprints.”
There will be no repeat of last year's stage win at the Rás for U23 international Conor Dunne (Photo: www.blackumbrella.ie)
Race director, Tony Campbell believes that the An Post-Chainreaction selection will be one of the strongest in the race.
“The team is always one to watch and that will be the same this year,” he said.
“They have very good riders and Kurt has a lot of experience managing teams in the event. He knows what it is like for his riders to take the overall and stages. The team should ride very well.”
The race begins in Dunboyne this Sunday, May 18th, and will feature stage end finishes in Roscommon, Lisdoonvarna, Charleville, Cahirciveen, Clonakilty, Carrick on Suir, Baltinglass and Skerries.
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