Having really impressed in the stage 3 TT at the UCI-ranked junior stage race, Sint Martinusprijs Kontich, in Belgium, Liam O'Brien continued to make progress at the top of the standings as the attrition kicked in on the final day.
After the riders were forced to contend with very hot conditions through the weekend, many of them did not survive that last stage; a 118.9km road race from Duffel to Kontich and run off at an average speed of 45.18km per hour.
While his eventual final GC result is excellent in its own right, O'Brien is displaying a real aptitude and physical ability for time trialing; something that will put in on the radar for elite and UCI Continental teams for the next few years when he moves up to the U23 ranks.
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He went into yesterday's final stage in 6th overall after his top tier performance in the stage 3 TT - where he was 4th among many of the leading juniors on the European scene. After the final day yesterday he managed to improve that position by two places, finishing 4th overall.
In the 10.6km stage 3 individual TT - from Waarloos to Kontich - O’Brien placed 4th from an international field of 133 riders, just nine seconds down on the winner. The stage was won by Steffen De Schuyteneer (AG2R Citroën U19 Team), this year’s junior Gent-Wevelgem winner, in a time of 13:19. He was 5 seconds up on both Sente Sentjens (ACROG-Tormans) and Australian junior TT champion Oscar Chamberlain (AG2R Citroën U19 Team), who were 2nd and 3rd.
O’Brien competes for Fermoy Cycling Cork at home and was riding for UK team Tofauti Everyone Active in Belgium in the UCI-ranked 2.1 five-stage race. It began last Thursday with an 18km team time trial, with O'Brien's team finishing 5th at 51 seconds. The Irish rider then went on to finish in the main bunch on Friday's stage 2 - some 120.9km starting and finishing in Kontich.
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Then O'Brien took his 5th place in Saturday morning's TT and he was up to 6th overall; some 1:12 down on yellow jersey De Schuyteneer. The Irish rider held that placing after Saturday afternoon's 120.4km stage into Kontich. That was won by Denmark's Andreas Krogh Jensen (Team Mascot Workwear), who was 10 seconds up on an eight-rider chasing group.
The remains of the main field, containing all of the general classification riders - including O'Brien - finished at 25 seconds. That gap was not enough to cause any significant change in the general classification, with the top six remaining unchanged and only minor changes after that.
That meant O'Brien went into yesterday's final stage, still in 6th at 1:12. The race split significantly, though the damage was at the back rather than off the front. The stage came down to a bunch sprint - from 80 riders - won by Belgian junior international Sente Sentjens (ACROG-Tormans).
There were significant time gaps to groups off the back of the bunch while a further 20 riders abandoned as the intensity of the five stages over four days of racing, in sweltering heat, took its toll. O'Brien stayed strong to the end, finishing in the bunch and moving up two places from 6th to 4th overall in the final general classification.
The race was won overall by De Schuyteneer - one of the best juniors in Europe - by 48 seconds from stage 5 winner Sentjens. Oscar Chamberlain (AG2R Citroën U19 Team) - who has won Australia and Oceanic junior TT titles - was 3rd at 55 seconds, while O'Brien 4th at 1:12.
