Lara Gillespie (UAE Development) is Ireland's new elite women's road race champion after a fantastic battle over 122km in sweltering heat in Co Tyrone today. Armitage, from Co Wicklow, was one of the aggressors through the race and when fatigue had set in among the front group in the final, she proved best.
Though she pulled clear very late in the race with Megan Armitage (Arkea Pro Cycling Team), and they looked like they would fight it out for gold and silver, a four-rider chasing group came back to them in the last kilometre of the Island Wheelers promotion.
However, it made no difference to Gillespie; the dual road and track international piling on the speed coming up the finishing straight to claim the second elite road race crown of her career and win the U23 title in the process.
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Caoimhe O’Brien (Belco Van Eyck) was also in the front group sprinting for the victory today and she took the silver medal with Armitage - who showed real class with a fantastic effort through the race - rounded out the podium.
Last year's winner, Alice Sharpe (Israel Premier Tech Roland) was 4th with Imogen Cotter (Fenix-Deceuninck Development) 5th and Linda Kelly (Spin the Bean p/b Coffee) in sixth and on the same time was the winner. There was then a 19 seconds gap back to the next women on the road, Fiona Mangan (Soltec Team) in 7th place.
While Gillespie and O'Brien told gold and silver in both the elite and U23 title races, former junior champion Aoife O'Brien (Spellman Dublin Port) won the U23 bronze - the O'Brien sisters going home to Westmeath with three medals between them.
How it unfolded
The elite-U23 women today faced the same 122km course as the junior men this morning; one passage of the 35.4km opening loop before four laps of the main race circuit. On that opening loop, it was Ellen McDermott who lit it up, the Team Boompods rider putting in a strong attack after about 10km of racing.
She pulled out a large gap solo, but with such a long way to go, the fact nobody went with her really counted against her. By the time she approached the Killyliss climb for the first ascent, McDermott had 1:45 in hand on the bunch.
Behind McDermott, big digs went in on the climb; Imogen Cotter (Fenix-Deceuninck Development), Megan Armitage (Arkea Pro Cycling Team) and Fiona Mangan (Soltec Team) all having a go.
Those efforts trimmed down the bunch and also saw McDermott's advantage tumble to about one minute almost immediately. And while she still led solo by the time they came around to Killyliss the second time, she was within 20 seconds of the bunch.
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As McDermott was caught on the climb, TT gold winner on Thursday night, Kelly Murphy (Awol O'Shea), attacked. She spent a period solo ahead of the bunch before being caught. With just over 70km raced she was back in the group.
Cotter was active at that point of the race, though she was marked by Armitage, defending champion Alice Sharpe (Israel Premier Tech Roland) and Lara Gillespie (UAE Development). It was then the turn of Armitage to light it up, going hard on Killyliss as they closed in on two laps to go, with former champion Eve McCrystal (Bellurgan Wheelers) suffering an untimely mechanical at that point.
That effort by Armitage saw a very strong seven-rider group pulled clear, only to ease off again and allow a regrouping to take place. However, while those seven riders did not press their advantage, they looked the strongest in the closing stages and appeared from that point they would dominate the final.
Those seven were: Caoimhe O’Brien (Belco Van Eyck), Alice Sharpe (Israel Premier Tech Roland), Linda Kelly (Spin the Bean p/b Coffee), Lara Gillespie (UAE Development) Imogen Cotter (Fenix-Deceuninck Development), Megan Armitage (Arkea Pro Cycling Team) and Fiona Mangan (Soltec Team).
At that point of the race - on the third last lap and into the penultimate lap - Armitage was flexing at the front; pressing hard and stringing out the group before the strongest group pulled clear only for a regrouping to take place. McCrystal was also battling well to get back to the group on the penultimate lap after her mechanical issues; making the juncture impressively to keep her hopes alive.
However, in championship race it is normally only a matter of time before those front splits become the key selection, and so it came to pass today, with the remains of the bunch breaking up on the penultimate lap.
Gillespie, Armitage and Sharpe - a really strong trio - pulled clear on the penultimate lap. However, they were chased hard, as they took the bell for the final lap, by a five-rider group. Among those five were: McCrystal, O'Brien, Mangan, Kelly and Cotter. The gap between the two groups was only a matter of seconds taking the bell and with about 20km to go, the juncture was made, making for an eight-rider group at the front to fight for the medals on the final lap.
And as that last lap began to unfold, it was Gillespie and Armitage taking on the race with attacks off the front of the group. Those moves caused the lead group to fracture; Gillespie, Cotter, Armitage, Sharpe and Kelly pulling clear. And while Kelly - an amateur among the pros - looked like she was feeling the pace, she was keeping herself in the fight.
And while Kelly was eventually distanced, she came back to the leaders in the company of McCrystal, Mangan and O’Brien on the back section of the course as the leaders regrouped before the final passage of Killyliss, just before the finish.
Even before that big finale began, the front group - after slowing - got a little bigger as Vanessa Fursden (Clones Cycling Club), putting in a great ride, also came back to the leaders, followed by early breakaway woman McDermott.
Once the road kicked up, the strongest riders began to pull clear of the others. Armitage piled on the pressure, with Gillespie following her closely. Sharpe and Cotter were next on the road, trying to stay in touch, before a bigger gap back to the others who had been in the front group.
And while Armitage and Gillespie pulled clear, Cotter chased them all the way into the finish, with some of the others hanging on to her. That resulted in a regrouping, with six riders together headed for the finish to decide who would be champion.
However, Gillespie clearly didn't care who was in the group. She turned on the speed to win from O'Brien and Armitage after a great race crowned a truly talented champion and also resulted in a podium filled with real quality.
