Cormac Mcgeough, guesting for Canadian team EC Makadence Primeau Vélo, has won stage 2 of Tour de Beauce (UCI 2.2). The 26-year-old has also taken the yellow jersey; his success in Canada coming just weeks after a great ride in Rás Tailteann, where he finished 2nd in the final overall.
At the end of yesterday's second stage in Canada - some 169km from Lac-Etchemin to Saint-Odilon-de-Cranbourne - Mcgeough was out on his own; winning the day by 20 seconds from a large chasing group.
Having finished in 25th on stage 1 - just 15 seconds off the 22-rider lead group sprinting for victory - Mcgeough has now taken the race lead by a single second from stage 1 winner Matisse Julien (Team Ecoflo Chronos), with Evan Russell (Cycling CB) 3rd, also one second down.
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Russell won the sprint for 2nd place yesterday, ahead of Matisse, at the head of the 15-rider chasing group, which was the largest group on the road on a day when the field split to pieces on lumpy terrain. While just two of the climbs were categorised, the final one was 4.3km at 3.5 per cent and was crested just 10km from the finish, with the final run to the line almost all downhill.
The main damage in the peloton was done with about 25km to go as the field broke up significantly at that point. However, Mcgeough made his move on the final climb, taking maximum points over the top just a handful of seconds ahead of the chasing group.
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Once he went over the crest of the climb, the US-based Irish rider put his head down and very quickly pulled out his gap to 25 seconds. While that came down a little before the finish, he had done enough to both win the stage and claim the race lead.
Today's stage 3 is the queen stage of the race and Mcgeough will need to be in very good form to retain his leader's jersey. The riders will race 169km from Lac-Mégantic to Mont Mégantic for an uphill finish.
That final climb to the line is just over 5km, though the last 1.7km has an average gradient over 12.4 per cent, which should split any group. The stage will conclude at the Mont-Mégantic observatory, which is located at the top of the highest paved road in Quebec.
