Strong Irish track team look for big results at Manchester World Cup

Moment of Triumph: Martyn Irvine takes the world scratch race title in Minsk in February. He's had a tough time since then but a medal at the European Championships two weeks ago says he's back near his best ahead of the UCI World Cup opener in Manchester this weekend.

The now familiar small but effective Irish track team of Martyn Irvine, Caroline Ryan and Eoin Mullen will hit the boards on international duty again this weekend, this time for the opening round of the UCI World Cup in Manchester.

Just short of one year ago – November 19^th last to be precise – Irvine was celebrating the second of his silver medals at the World Cup meeting in Glasgow where he finished runner up in both the scratch race and individual pursuit.

The Newtownards man subsequently went on to win the scratch world title in Minsk in February and took the silver in the individual pursuit on the same afternoon.

In the weeks that followed, he returned to road racing with his Unitedhealthcare trade team but almost immediately crashed and broke his hip at the Tour of Taiwan in March.

That left him sidelined for the entire road season, though he battled very hard to get back in shape and just two weeks ago took a bronze medal in the omnium at the European Championships; a clear indication he is very much back to his old self.

That result coupled with the fact he has just been re-signed by Unitedhealthcare for 2014 means Ireland’s only current world champion is very much on an upward trajectory after a rollercoaster 12 months. He is capable of big results in both the pursuit and points race this weekend

Ryan is ranked No 1 in the world in the pursuit – Irvine holds that spot in both the pursuit and the scratch race – and she too is capable of a medal this weekend when she rides the pursuit and scratch race.

The garda and former international rower from Kildare is acquainted with medal winning rides, having won a bronze in the points race at the Worlds in 2012. She is also national TT champion and was an excellent 5^th in the pursuit at the Worlds this year in Minsk.

Eoin Mullen is the youngest of the trio but is gradually emerging as an equally capable rider. He is constantly setting new personal bests in his sprint events and earlier this month took his first international win at the Three Days of Aigle in Switzerland.

Crucial for him this weekend will be the points on offer towards qualifying for the World Championships next year in Colombia, though he is more than capable of another big improvement in the next few days and bagging a result in Manchester. (See Irish riders' schedule below photos.)

Top of the World: The bronze medal in the points race at the World Championships in Australia last year was a seminal moment for Caroline Ryan and indeed Irish cycling. But 5th in the pursuit at this year's Worlds suggests this is an athlete with plenty more to come.

Real Deal: Eoin Mullen progresses further up the world class ladder every time he pulls on a green jersey and will be looking for World Championships qualifying points this weekend.