Having missed a huge chunk of training and racing over the last 12 month due to illness and injury, Lara Gillespie is back on song. The 21-year-old is the first race leader at Rás na mBan 2022 having won the opening stage into Callan yesterday evening; the first win on the race by an Irish rider for eight long years.
And while she says the World Track Championships in Paris in coming weeks are the biggest goal of her season, she told stickybottle her power numbers were getting better each week and now reaching new record highs. She also harbours hopes of winning Rás na mBan when the race concludes in Kilkenny on Sunday.
After winning a silver medal in the U23 European Track Championships in the Netherlands in August of last year, lingering health issues kicked in hard and Gillespie was forced off the bike for a prolonged period. Her recovery was set back late last year when dreaded glandular fever struck.
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However, since then she has gradually recovered and rebuilt. In July she was back in international action with 5th places in the elimination race, points race and scratch race at the U23 European Track Championships in Portugal in July.
At the elite Europeans in Munich last month she finished 9th in the madison, with Mia Griffin, and was also part of the team pursuit line-up that placed 6th. Gillespie, from Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, then followed that up with a win in the final round of the National Road Series in Dromore, Co Down, despite it being her first race on the road for two years.
And having been named in the Irish team for Rás na mBan, she told stickybottle she went into yesterday's opening stage very much looking forward to the challenge.
"I was just really excited," she said of being on the road again in an Irish team. "It's a really nice team to be on, the atmosphere the team morale; it's definitely the best atmosphere and team environment I've ever been on. And we have a really good manager (former international road rider Barry Monaghan) so the whole atmosphere going into the race was really, really good.
"We're really confident and we're on all good form so we just used it in the right way (on stage 1) and it was completely a team effort and I was just really happy I could finish it off."
With the Irish team taking responsibility for the front of the race for long periods during yesterday's race - setting the pace, chasing down moves and then backing Gillespie in the finale - the new race leader says they are hoping for more of the same in the stages ahead.
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"We always want to be there and take control the way we can. We had a really good lead, Kelly (Murphy) was on the front for ages towards the finish and just drove it on and really controlled it," Gillespie said.
"And then I was in a really good position coming off Eve's (McCrystal) wheel into the final bend and I put the head down and got over the line. So it was really good and we felt quite confident going into it. And even with the rain… I love the rain, I was just smiling the whole time though it was lashing rain. So none of that effected me; we kept to our plan and worked hard."
Gillespie said the stage was "quite fast" but she focused on staying safe and holding position in the top 20 in the bunch while she negotiated the main climb on the course well.
"I felt quite comfortable, I think we all did so I think that was something good to take out of it for (stage 2), we have gas still for the next few days."
Gillespie was also hopeful of keeping the race leader's jersey, perhaps all the way to the end of Rás na mBan on Sunday, with the split stage.
"We'll take it as it comes and see who is feeling good on the day. We'll be riding for the team and I'll see how I feel. But I hope to stay in the lead and stay in the front group every day."
She has also coped very well with the switch from track to road, explaining her need to recover and regain condition meant lots of miles on the road recently, which is now standing to her.
"I've only got back training properly in June and July and it was a lot of easy endurance miles to build back up because I missed eight or nine months of actual riding," she said. "So I have got a nice bit of endurance done and in between the Europeans (track championships) I was able to do long rides when I was over there. The goal of the season is the Worlds in October so this is a really good endurance based for that.
"I just need to have the speed at the end, my power is only getting better each week. I'm getting new PBs each week. I feel like my body has matured over the last two years. I know I've been sick but I'm still developing, which is good."
