Ireland’s Mia Griffin went close to winning today’s final
stage at Rás na mBan, but it was US star junior Kaia Schmid of Lux Cycling who
took her second stage win of the 2021 edition.
Schmid, who won gold, silver and bronze at the junior
World Track Championships just last week, also won the opening stage at Rás na
mBan last Wednesday.
She, and some of her team mates, were riding the Irish stage race against the elites in between representing the US at the track Worlds in Egypt last week and the road Worlds in Flanders next week.
They made the most of their time here; Schmid winning the
opening and closing stages and the points classification. Her team mate Makayla
MacPherson – who is also bound for the Florence Worlds – won Saturday evening’s
criterium in Kilkenny.
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Today’s final stage was 88km, starting in Springhill
Court Hotel in Kilkenny and winding its way back to Kilkenny Castle, with the
challenging climb of Woodstock near Inistioge along the way.
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Team GB were 1st and 2nd overall going into today’s final stage, with Anna Shackley leading by five seconds from her team mate Abi Smith.
Loes Adegeest (Loes Jan van Arckel), the Dutch rider who won stage 2, was in 3rd at 44 seconds, followed by Team Ireland’s Alice Sharpe and Kelly Murphy - in 4th and 5th at 57 seconds and 1:15 respectively.
The Irish team
put in a big effort on the front in the closing kilometres of today’s stage
after lone breakaway rider, Fernanda Yapura
(Team Macadam’s Cowboys), was caught in the final 2km
having spent about 25km up the road solo.
However, it was
Schmid who proved strongest at the finish, taking her second stage win just
ahead of Mia Griffin, with Shackley wrapping up the overall victory.
Linda Kelly of
the Munster team won the Irish rider category after enjoying a breakthrough ride
this week, with 5th in yesterday’s short uphill TT.
More to come.
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