News Shorts: Irish top 20 at Unbound Gravel 200; EvoPro's Walsh in Belgium

*Ben Walsh has put in a very solid ride against WorldTour opposition in Belgium (Photo: Martine Verfaillie)*

Ben Walsh in Belgium

Irish U23 rider Ben Walsh has enjoyed a solid day out against WorldTour opposition at Elfstedenronde (1.1) in Bruges, Belgium.

The 193km race, which featured small climbs on the finishing circuit, split in the closing stages though the sprinters still survived in the reduced peloton to fight it out for victory.

Giro stage winner Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix) just held off Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck-QuickStep) and Sasha Weemaes (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise) to collect his 6th win of the season. Just 17 riders were credited with the same time on the line.

The remains of the peloton split on the run in to the finish and Walsh found himself on the wrong side of some gaps. However, he was in contention until close to the end of the race and finished in a group 1:07 down and in 92nd place from 160 starters.

There were three other Irish riders in the race; Michael O'Loughlin and Sean Nolan of EvoPro Racing and Stephen Clancy of Novo Nordisk. All three were listed among the non finishers.

Olivia Dillon at Unbound Gravel 200

Lara Gillespie attacks Dolomite stage as Giro hits high mountains — *Olivia Dillon was a seriously good rider on the road and in more recent years she's made plenty of waves in gravel racing in the US*

Video - Italy's hero Balsamo mobbed mid-stage during Giro TT — *Olivia Dillon was a seriously good rider on the road and in more recent years she's made plenty of waves in gravel racing in the US*

Olivia Dillon, the former pro road rider who represented Ireland up to World Championships level, flew the Irish flag in the Unbound Gravel 200 race in the US at the weekend, taking a top 20 result in the main event.

Dillon, who is now aged 48 years, turned to gravel after her road career and immediately made her mark as a really impressive athlete in the discipline.

Three years ago she won both Sagan Dirt Fondo and Lost and Found Gravel Grinder, which are among the biggest gravel races on the US west coast. At the weekend in Emporia, Kansas, she lined in the Unbound 200 - the main event for men and women - and was 16th in the women's category.

Of the 919 entrants - which included former WorldTour riders - Dillon placed 101st. The race was won by former Team Sky rider Ian Boswell (30) in a two-up sprint from Laurens ten Dam (40), who finished in the top 10 in both La Vuelta and the Tour during his long pro career.

The winner and runner-up rode the 200 mile gravel race in a time of 10hrs 27mins. Dillon, who is originally from Co Mayo but has been living in the US for many years, completed the race in just under 14 hours.

During her road racing days she won Rás na mBan twice, won the national road race title in 2010 and was four times national TT champion. She also rode the Worlds five times and retired from road racing after riding the 2015 Worlds in the US.