Archie Ryan may have been the rider backed most by Team Ireland at Tour de l'Avenir, and taken another great result on today's final stage, but Jamie Meehan has also shone on this race and was aggressive during today's last outing.
Some 24 hours after Ryan showed his class with victory on stage 7b to Val-Cenis Col du Mont Cenis, when he out-climbed the best riders in the race to win, Ryan was active in the finale today while Meehan got himself in the first real breakaway of the day.
Today's stage 8 - some 99.6km from Val-Cenis to Sainte-Foy-Tarentaise - was won by 19-year-old Giulio Pellizzari (Italy), who had stared the day 4th overall. He just got the better of Isaac del Toro (Mexico) in a two-up sprint to the line on the summit finish on Sainte-Foy-Tarentaise.
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And because that duo had pulled clear of the rest of the field - and yellow jersey Matthew Riccitello (USA) was 2:52 down, back in 12th place - del Toro won the race overall, having begun the final stage in 2nd place some 54 seconds down. The impressive Mexican rider, still just 19-years-old, also won the mountains classification and and the 'youth' classification.
Ryan was active at the front of the race through the final 50km today, and though a few riders managed to elude him on the final climb, he ended the day in 5th place, some 1:28 down. Ryan was active off the front of the remains of the peloton, in a small group containing the yellow jersey, from about 50km to go today.
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With a seven-man breakaway up the road, containing the eventual stage and overall winner, Ryan attacked from the group he was in, with Jan Christen (Switzerland) for company, with just over 15km to go. And while Ryan pressed on on the final climb, he was unable to mop up four of the breakaway men and had to settle for 5th on the stage, though still a very good showing.
Earlier in the race, Meehan was aggressive off the front, getting himself into a breakaway and mopping up some climbers' points before his group was caught. He would eventually finish an excellent 18th place on the stage, at 4:12, while Kevin McCambridge was 59th at 12:33.
McCambridge also put in a very strong performance on yesterday morning's stage 7a mountain TT, finishing 14th on the stage, some 1:57 down on stage winner, Riccitello. Three of Ireland's six starters finished the race, with Dean Harvey unable to start stage 2 after riding in the breakaway on the opening day of action while crashes took out Patrick O'Loughlin and Odhran Doogan.
Ryan ended the race in 16th place overall, at 17:56, while Meehan was 30th at 32:38 and McCambridge placed 58th at 53:43.
