Lucy Bénézet Minns has put in a very strong ride in a sodden and crash-hit junior women's road race at the UCI World Road Championships in Zurich.
One of Irish cycling's brightest prospects - and already a European track champion this year - the teenager was not helped by the multiple crashes that marred the road race today, splitting what remained of the pack with about 45km to go.
Though Bénézet Minns battled her way back on, and fought hard to remain in contention, she got back onto the leaders, when a general regrouping occurred, just before the last big climb of the race.
And once the riders hit that climb, the field split again, with Bénézet Minns getting into what was effectively the third small group on the road. She finished in that group, sprinting in to 10th some 1:26 down on new champion Cat Ferguson (Great Britain).
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Ireland's Aliyah Rafferty was 38th today, a strong ride in a first World Championships in what is her first year as a junior. She was in what remained of the peloton at 5:27. Aine Doherty was 79th at 10:45, meaning all three riders finished the race.
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What a talent! ? Another World title in Zurich as GB's Cat Ferguson claims victory in the Women’s Junior road race, adding to her TT crown from earlier in the week! ??? pic.twitter.com/FFf1rPycJe
— Eurosport (@eurosport) September 26, 2024
Race winner, Ferguson, who also won the TT this week, was clear in a three-rider group sprinting for the medals and managed to see off the challenge of Paula Ostiz (Spain), who took silver, and Viktória Chladoňová (Slovakia), who claimed bronze.
They engaged in a very tactical game of cat and mouse for most of the last 2km and that allowed lone chaser, Megan Arens (Netherlands), close up by about one minute, though she still finished nine seconds back in 4th.
Big French hope Célia Gery then finished solo - after the Italian rider she was with crashed very hard in the finishing straight - for 5th at 56 seconds.
And then came the group Bénézet Minns was in, led in by Imogen Wolff (Great Britain), who was 6th at 1:26, with the Irish rider towards the back of that six-rider group, for 10th.
The top five riders on the day had been in a breakaway for well over half the 73.5km race. And though two chasing groups caught them when the race regrouped with about 25km to go, when they hit the climb for the second time, the four pulled clear again, later trimmed to three.
