Teenagers lead the way in women's elite race at 'Cross Champs, Limerick

*Aliyah Rafferty has won the elite women's race at the National Cyclocross Championships, with two 16-year-olds taking gold and silver (Photo: Sean Rowe)*

Aliyah Rafferty (Tofauti Everyone Active) has won the elite crown at the National Cyclocross Championships, at the first time of asking, in Limerick today.

She swept to the gold medal on a day when the new generation emerged and took their place at the top of the discipline as veteran Maria Larkin (Cuttin' Crew) saw her run of three wins on the trot ended by the emerging teenagers.

Greta Lawless (Team WORC), the other 16-year-old revelation of the season, took the silver medal after she and Rafferty were dominant at the head of affairs today.

At just 16-years-old, Rafferty is believed to be the youngest ever winner of the elite title, and definitely the youngest winner since Lara Gillespie, then of Orwell Wheelers, won five years ago.

In very cold conditions in the Greenmount Cycling Academy-promoted event, Rafferty went from the gun like a bullet and had 13 seconds on eventual silver medalist, Lawless, after the first circuit was complete.

Caoimhe May (Orwell Wheelers) put in, by far, her best performance of the season today, and soon slotted into 3^rd place, which she held to the line. She was closely followed by Aine Doherty (VC Glendale), Larkin and Roisin Lally.

And through the first three laps in the five-lap event, the race was one of seconds, though the gaps continued to open and the early pecking order remained, more or less, set through the race.

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At the end of the third lap, Rafferty led by 28 seconds from Lawless, with May in 3^rd, a further 17 seconds back, and junior rider Doherty in 4^th, another 18 seconds back.

Larkin was in 5^th, but her hopes of taking another gold medal looked gone as she trailed leader Rafferty by about 1½ minutes.

By the end of lap four, the fight for the medals looked like it was already over; Rafferty leading Lawless by 39 seconds, with May in 3^rd at 1:23, and 36 seconds up on Doherty in 4^th place.

May was clearly determined not to allow the juniors a clean sweep of the podium and she was succeeding in that regard with just one lap remaining.

And so it came to pass; the two first-year juniors – Rafferty and Lawless – taking gold and silver, 38 seconds apart, with May winning the bronze medal, after a fine performance to get onto the podium, at 1:53.

In the women's Masters race, experienced international rider Michelle Geoghegan (Unattached) claimed victory by 41 seconds from Jean Wilson (Orwell Wheelers CC), with Melissa Anderson (IMBRC) taking bronze.

More to come.