Action from Cathal Miller’s individual C4-5 road race at Brands Hatch today
Colin Lynch and Cathal Miller have enjoyed mixed fortunes in their road races at the London Paralympics, with Lynch crashing early in his event but Miller enjoying a good performance.
Having come into these Games holding two world titles, in the TT and track pursuit, Lynch has emerged from his London experience empty handed and very much had a day to forget today.
He went into the C1-3 road race in aggressive form and in the belief that a decisive move would most likely go early, possibly from the gun.
He moved up in the group as the race approached its first corner but was over-ambitious and crashed into the barriers, ending his race just as it was beginning.
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“I thought a decisive break could come at the first corner so I got myself up there to be in it. I got boxed off and ended up going straight into the barriers.”
While the fall was a heavy one and left him with race-ending road rash, he did not break any bones and luckily walked away from it.
“My pride and bike are a bit damaged, but everything else is OK,” he said.
The race was won by Italian Roberto Bargna, who took a 12-man group sprint from Steffen Warias of Germany with Australian David Nicholas taking the bronze.
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Enda Smyth was advised on medical grounds not to start, following a week in which he set personal bests on the track and rode the TT. He broke his elbow in recent weeks and his physical condition has weakened as the Games have gone on leading to his non-start today in the same race as Lynch.
Cathal Miller, who carried the flag for Team Ireland at the opening ceremony and was disappointed with his performance on the track earlier at these Games, took 14th in the C4-5 road race on the Brands Hatch circuit.
The 80km race was a fast one, finishing a full 15 minutes ahead of the quickest anticipated race schedule.
The race was won by Yegor Dementyev of Ukraine, who took the gold by 10 seconds to add to his TT gold of yesterday. Xinyang Liu of China was second today, with Michele Pittacolo of Italy a further three seconds adrift.
Miller said he as happy with 14th,
“That was my best road race to date; I’m racing against professional riders out there,” said the Dublin-based civil servant.
“I was delighted to finish in 14th place; that is in the top 40 per cent in the race, not bad against professional riders like Dementyev and Gallagher who are so dominant in cycling.”
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