UPDATED: Lavery takes emotional lone victory at Shay Elliott in near race-long escape

Lavery took the bull by the horns and he got a great win (Photo: Ian Mulvaney)

Philip Lavery (NODE4 Giordana) has taken his latest win of the 2012 season, storming home in fine style this afternoon to take what is arguably domestic cycling’s most prestigious one-day race, the Shay Elliott Memorial.

The 21-year-old Dubliner may have had just seconds to spare over chasing duo Ryan Sherlock (Cycleways) and Kieran Frend (NODE4 Giordana), but he won the race from the front with some trademark aggressive riding. He later dedicated the win to cycling legend Seamus Kennedy who died last week and had been a close friend of the Lavery family.

Lavery was part of a four-man group that went clear after an intense period of attacking from the peloton in the first 10-15km. As well as the eventual winner in that group, there was also Adam Armstrong (Eurocycles), Damien Shaw (Lakeside) and junior rider Ryan Mullen (Planet X).

That quartet pressed on well on a very breezy day, though the bunch behind began to split with a number of chasing groups apparently not intent on throwing in the towel.

At around the halfway stage Armstrong abandoned the race from the leading breakaway, leaving just three up front.

Lavery was determined to impose himself on the race and on the climb up Glenmalure he pressed on alone, with still around 30kms remaining to the finish. Mullen was the first to be dropped by the flying Lavery and then Shaw, with the Mullingar man only around 30 -40 seconds down at the top of the climb.

Behind him Ryan Sherlock and Lavery’s team mate Frend pulled clear of a chasing group as the early breakaway duo of Mullen and Shaw were absorbed by those behind.

Sherlock had the misfortune of pulling clear with a NODE4 Giordana rider, who understandably did not contribute to the chase after the lone leader Lavery.

While Sherlock gave it everything and Lavery was clearly beginning to pay for his race-long efforts, the gap did not close and Lavery had a few seconds to spare on the line after being down to as little as 30 seconds with 10km to go.

Friend came around Sherlock for second at the end, resulting in a NODE4 Giordana 1-2. Lavery was quite emotional on the line after a display that won’t be forgotten for a while. It’s a timely confidence boost for him with less than one week to go before the An Post Ras, coming as it does after he was forced out of the Tour of Ulster with illness last weekend.