Mark Downey has been included in the six-man Irish team for this weekend’s Kreiz-Breizh elites race in France. The VC Toucy rider is having a superb season and deservedly gets his chance to wear the green jersey again.
By Brian Canty
A very strong six-man Irish team for the 2.2-ranked Kreiz-Breizh elites race this weekend in France has been named with Mark Dowling once again set to lead the line.
The ASEA-Wheelworx man is in great form at the moment – as are the other five who have been selected.
Mark Downey, Matt Teggart, Darragh O’Mahony, Conor Hennebry and Sean McKenna make up the squad for the three-day, four-stage event which gets underway on Saturday.
There are 28 teams in all which will make up a field of 168 riders from all over Europe.
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There’s a strong representation from the Netherlands with six squads travelling to the north-west of France while the host nation make up exactly half the teams.
Norway, Spain and Belgium are the other countries represented for what is a largely continental-level field.
Last year Dowling was the Irish rider who really excelled, getting up the road in the breaks and taking climbers’ points.
There are just two changes from last year’s team with rising Kanturk star O’Mahony coming in for the biggest race of his career while Hennebry also gets the call-up following three wins in less than two weeks in Belgium.
Downey is well used to racing in France and won’t have any fear of the opposition, his silver medal in the points’ race at the European track championships recently proving he is enjoying a good run of form that goes all the way back to the An Post Rás over two months ago.
McKenna has been based in Belgium the last number of weeks along with his Aquablue teammate Hennebry and he will be keen to make his mark on the race which features plenty chances for guys who go uphill quickly.
Stage one on Saturday morning is 194 kilometres, stage two on Sunday morning is 82 kilometres while in the afternoon there’s another 100-kilometre journey before Monday’s final stage, a 163-kilometre trek.
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