The New Zealand national team have been confirmed for the An Post Rás which gets underway in Dublin on May 22nd. The men from the southern hemisphere have always brought a lot to the event and in 2014 they took two stages through Paddy Bevin, above. Leading their charge this year is the double Olympic medal winner Hayden Roulston.
By Brian Canty
With just over two weeks to go to the start of the An Post Rás, one of the strongest teams for the race has been announced today, Friday.
The New Zealand national team will travel to Ireland for the eight-day event which gets underway from Dublin Castle on Sunday May 22nd.
The men in black have always had a big presence in the race and in 2014 they took two stage wins through Paddy Bevin - who has since moved on to WorldTour level with Cannondale - and held the yellow jersey for a number of days.
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Bevin’s bid to win the race outright was scuppered when he lost two teammates to sickness midway.
Roulston winning the New Zealand title ahead of Jack Bauer in 2014. He would continue to race at WorldTour level for Trek until the end of last year (Photo: Sirotti)
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Their team for this year is led by one of the most decorated Kiwi riders of all time, with Hayden Roulston heading their assault.
The 35-year old multiple national champion, who raced with Cervélo Test Team, HTC Highroad, Radioshack Nissan and Trek Factory Racing, spearheads a team of young guns that includes Regan Gough, Dylan Kennett, Pieter Bulling and Nick Kergozou.
The former three will form the country’s quest for success at the track events at this summer’s Olympic Games.
Gough, Kennett and Bulling were part of the gold medal-winning team pursuit squad at the world track championships last year while Gough also won the points and madison races at the 2014 world junior track championships.
Kergozou is no stranger to Ireland and as well as racing the An Post Rás last year he also won the omnium event at last year’s Dublin Track Cycling International.
“2016 is a key year for Cycling New Zealand with the Rio Olympics as it is an important pinnacle event for the New Zealand program,” said national men’s track endurance coach Tim Carswell.
“On paper, we have one of the strongest teams that New Zealand have ever fielded at the An Post Rás.
“We look forward to building on the success we have had in past editions. We see that the course is quite challenging this year but we hope to target stages and evaluate opportunities as the race unfolds.”
This year’s An Post Rás will comprise a very strong international field. Thus far, 13 foreign teams have been announced for the event, with squads coming from Australia, Austria, Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the USA.
The world-ranked event will feature stage finishes in Multyfarnham, Charleville, Dingle, Sneem, Clonakilty, Dungarvan and Baltinglass before concluding in Skerries on May 29th.
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