Megan Armitage (Team Ireland) has put in a strong performance in the road race at the Olympic Games would looked like she would have done much better had she not been delayed by a crash at a crucial point of the race.
The Irish rider, making her OIympic and attacking multiple times today, had the misfortunate of being behind American Chloe Dygert when the crash-prone rider hit the deck, having also fallen in last weekend's Olympic TT.
Though Armitage did not fall herself on the right hander where Dygert came down, she got caught behind the American as she got back up off the tarmac. Up ahead, the impact of the crash - causing a split on the narrow streets - and the pace being applied by Spain, meant the field split.
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And though Armitage went on to finish 35th, from 90 starters, she never saw the front of the race again; a massive shame as she had been aggressive, and was well-positioned, in the period of the 157.6km race when she suffered her mishap.
That incident occurred with 48km to go, just before the field reach the climb of Butte Montmatre for the first of three passages. A little earlier, at the 60km to go marker, Armitage had launched a first attack, but was immediately chased down by the bunch, as the survivors from the early breakaway were still 1:15 up the road.
And with 58km to go, Armitage was again active at the front, following attacks and briefly getting clear in a small group that was caught almost immediately.
Just 2km later, the Offaly woman - the only Irish rider in the race - responded to an attack by German champion Franziska Koch, but they were not granted any leeway by the main field.
Alison Jackson (Canada) they tried her luck, but at that stage the Dutch had taken up residency on the front of the main field and closed her down. And when Armitage went again with 54km to go, it was the Dutch that responded and cancelled out her move.
The Irish rider, knowing the circuit and first passage of the climb was coming up, then remained in the front section of the bunch until Dygert crashed, creating a split at the front and holding up Armitage, who was forced to unclip.
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Just after the crash, the climb began and a group of about 10-15 riders pulled clear, and would stay clear only to explode over the next two passages of the climb.
Marianne Vos (Netherlands) and Blanka Vas (Hungary) were the last two standing and it looked like they were riding towards gold and silver. However, they were pursued, and caught with about 5km to go, by Kristen Faulkner (USA) and Lotte Kopecky (Belgium).
Faulkner put in a huge effort to split the chasing group, and closed almost all of a 30-second gap to the two leaders on the last ascent of the climb. Very quickly the two leaders and chasers became a four-rider lead group, with Faulkner attacking almost immediately.
And when Vos and Kopecky looked at each other, both unwilling to chase as Vas looked on from behind them, Faulkner had a gap of 20 and then 30 seconds very quickly; take a brilliant win.
In the three-up blanket sprint for the the remaining medals, Vos took silver, with Kopecky winning the bronze and Vas left with 4th; perhaps fittingly as she had refused to fully commit with Vos when it looked like they were head to 1st and 2nd.
Armitage finished in 35th at 7:35 and she was only the second Irish woman to ride an Olympic road race - after Deirdre Murphy in 2000 - and the first to finish.
La no celebración de la nueva campeona olímpica Faulkner.
La plata y bronce.
La entrada de Mavi García en 6ª plaza, la mejor de una ESP en IRR de JJOO#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/RFip1d5wJw— elsterrato (@elsterrato) August 4, 2024
