An eight-rider Irish team, six women and two men, has been selected by Cycling Ireland for the upcoming European Track Championships in Grenchen, Switzerland. The championships, from February 8th to 12th, will be the first event in the Olympic qualification process.
National track coach, Dan Henchy, said it was "exciting" to be able to name such a strong Irish team for the championships, made up of riders who had already achieved significant international results.
"The European Championships is a big event in its own right, and this year has extra significance as the first qualification event towards the 2024 Olympic Games," he said.
"The standard of competition is sure to be very high and we’ll be looking for the team to continue the progression from last season and show that we can compete with the top riders in Europe. This event will springboard straight into the Nations Cup programme so a strong start to Olympic qualification is needed with a busy race schedule to follow in the coming months.”
Advertisement
Related News
The team is comprised of the five riders who make up the team pursuit squad, and who have a great chance of qualifying for the Game; Alice Sharpe, Emily Kay, Kelly Murphy, Lara Gillespie, Mia Griffin.
JB Murphy, a medalist at junior World and junior and elite Europeans, makes a welcome return to the Irish track after a bad crash on the road last year derailed his season.
The squad is completed by the two powerhouses in the Irish groups, sprinters Orla Walsh and Conor Rowley. Both Walsh and Rowley will ride the sprint and keirin events, while Walsh will also go in the 500m TT.
Murphy will take on the scratch race and omnium having won a bronze in the scratch race at the 2021 Europeans. The team pursuit group - who won Europeans bronze two years ago - will also compete in a range of other endurance events, though specific races have not yet been assigned to the individual riders.
