Three wins in three days in Belgium for Irish riders of FBD Talent Team 2020

Ireland's Jake Gray on top of the podium with team mate Michael O'Loughlin (right) taking third place on Monday. The win brought to three the number of victories in as man days for the FBD Talent Team 2020 in Belgium.

By Brian Canty

Cycling Ireland ’s youth FBD Talent Team 2020 are bringing to a close a remarkable stint in Belgium that has seen them take three wins in as many days.

On Monday the team notched up win number three when Jake Gray took victory in a criterium race in the town of Stenseel, with Michael O’Loughlin third.

Gray, an Under-15 rider from the East Tyrone club, took the win after he and O’Loughlin had escaped in the day’s four-man break after just three laps.

O’Loughlin, who played a crucial role in helping Dion McCarthy get the winning streak underway on Saturday, put in another phenomenal ride on Monday and his attack on the third lap when he went for a prime split the field with Gray getting across to him.

Two more joined them and they rode well together for the remainder of the 40-kilometre race, run over a circuit of 1.6 kilometres.

With four laps to gop, O’Loughlin made a huge effort to try and get away and a big chase from the other two riders followed, with Gray watching and sitting on the back.

And as soon as O’Loughlin was caught, Gray attacked hard and immediately saw his margin go out to 30 seconds. He held that to the finish where he had time to celebrate a fabulous win.

O’Loughlin took third, adding to his seventh place on Saturday.

There were seven Irish riders in the race in total, Adam Stenson, Declan Mulholland, Aaron Swan and Adam Thatcher the other riders taking part.

On Sunday the team had Ronan Tuomey blitz the field to win an Under-14 crit in Tessenderlo, in the north-east of the country.

Tuomey, from Cork County CC, was easily the strongest in the race and Martin O’Loughlin, FBD Talent Team coach, said their biggest problem was holding him back.

The race was held on a slightly longer 1.8 kilometre route and Tuomey got into the first move of the day – an 11-man escape that was caught midway through.

After that came a volley of attacks with a seven-man group forming off the front, and again Tuomey was present, as was another Corkman, Dillon Corkery from the O’Leary’s Stone Kanturk club.

That group was never caught and when it came in for the sprint, Tuomey took top honours with Corkery holding on for fifth.

The win will come as a huge confidence booster for Tuomey who suffered terrible luck last week before the Errigal Youth Tour when his bike, along with his brother Simon’s, were stolen outside Brown’s Bar in Dublin as they headed for the stage race.

The Tuomey family turned around and headed for Cork where they collected two more bikes, one from their father and another from Willie Curtin, member of Cork County CC.