Lara Gillespie celebrates after winning the Junior Women's National title in Coolaney, Co Sligo, yesterday. (Photo: Sean Rowe)
Teenage cycling champ Lara Gillespie looks to Worlds, Euros
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By Graham Gillespie
Teenager Lara Gillespie notched the latest stage in her development at the weekend in winning another national title.
Having hoovered up Irish crowns in the youth ranks and won the elite cyclocross title in her first weeks out of her U16 years, Gillespie now has a junior road title in her palmares.
She claimed that victory in the road race in Sligo. Sadly her efforts to win the TT title came to nothing last Thursday as not enough juniors turned out to make it a championships event.
But her win on the road on Sunday was a perfect return for the emerging talent, who had to take a break from the bike due to a broken hand.
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“It’s a good start to the road because I haven’t really been racing much,” she said.
“I had a big rest due to breaking my hand. My road season is only really starting now.”
Yesterday’s race came down to sprint between Lara Gillespie and Castlebar CC’s Maeve Gallagher.
Reflecting upon her victory, Gillespie explained it was early in the four-lap contest when she realised it would come down to sprint.
“We started as a small bunch of five. And then gradually with the hill we ended up as just Maeve and I for the last lap.
“Then it just came down to a sprint in the last 200 metres,” she said. “We realised it would come down to the two of us on the second lap.
"We had a whole lap on our own where we were just working hard trying to wear each other out but not attack each other.”
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From top down: Lara Gillespie, Maeve Gallagher and Gabriella Homer side by side on the road. Gillespie ahead of Gallagher with Homer in the background. Gillespie celebrates on the line. (All photos: Sean Rowe)
Gillespie has already enjoyed success internationally. The Youth Olympic silver medallist was the fourth best junior at the World Cyclocross Championship this year.
And for this summer she will be hoping to leave her mark on the road and track.
Her journey abroad will likely start in the Czech Republic with the junior European Road Championships, from July 12th to 15th.
“I’ll be hoping to go to the Europeans in July, and hopefully if all goes well then maybe the Worlds,” she said.
“That all depends on if I get any results when I am over there though," she added, modestly not assuming she is an automatic pick.
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Gillespie also aspires to get some results in the velodrome during the summer.
“Then track is also a big aim as well and that’s coming up too,” she said of several big fixtures ahead.
“I’ll be doing the Dublin International Track race next weekend hopefully. And then it will be the Europeans and Worlds as well,” she said.
The cyclocross will then be her main cycling aim once the school year comes back around.
“It will be that and the hockey, so it will be a good mix. I won’t get bored anyways.”
Striking the balance between her school and sporting life can be tough for Gillespie, but she also says that she enjoys the challenge.
“It’s hard enough but it’s doable. I just have a lot of early morning training sessions.
“And there’s late-night training sessions and late-night studying. You get tired but it’s worth it in the end,” she said.
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