Ewan Warren, who burst onto the scene with a victory in the Gorey Three Day three years ago, has today taken perhaps the biggest win of his career after claiming the final stage of Vuelta a Guadalentin.
The 21-year-old, riding for Spanish team Natural Greatness Rali-Ale, did in the hard way today when he got the better of race leader, and overall winner, Pablo Ortega Sanz (High Level-GSport) at the end of a 3hr 45mins hard stage with a very tough finale.
That victory came just 24 hours after Jamie Meehan was 6th in Ronde du Pays Basque in France riding for his new UCI Continental team, AVC Aix-en-Provence Dole.
For Warren the today, the 159km stage, from Lorca to Fortaleza del Sol de Lorca, featured five categorised climbs, including two cat 3s in the final third, and an kicker to the finish line, with the quality of the win surely boost Warren's chances of being selected for the U23 national team this year.
Advertisement
Warren was part of a group of about 15-20 riders trading blows at the front on the finale, with attacks splitting the group several times before the strongest riders came to the fore at the finish.
And on the line there were just three sprinting it out for victory; Warren getting the better of Ortega Sanz and Adrián Benito (Extremadura-Pebetero), with all three finishing on the same time.
The quality of that victory is underlined by the fact the 2nd and 3rd place finishers today were 1st and 2nd overall. We'll have more later from Warren, who was not the only Irish rider in action in Europe today as the amateur and pro campaigns gather pace.
Related News
There were no fewer than three Irish women in action, also in Spain, in Vuelta CV Feminas (1.Pro); a 104km race from Alfafar to Valencia.
The pan flat event finished in a bunch sprint win by Linda Zanetti (Uno-X Mobility) from Jelena Erić (Movistar Team) and Daria Pikulik (Human Powered Health).
Irish national elite road race and TT champion Fiona Mangan (Winspace Orange Seal) was 18th while Caoimhe O'Brien, riding for her new team Cynisca Cycling, placed 19th; both on the same time as the winner. Emma Jeffers (Liv AlUla Jayco Women's Continental Team) was 41st at 15 seconds.
On Saturday, former U23 Irish road race champion Meehan took his first result of the season in France with 6th in Ronde du Pays Basque, where he was in a group of 13 riders, sprinting for 4th, some 25 seconds down on race winner Malo Stevant (Dinan Sport Cycling).
Meehan was in action today, Sunday, in the 123km Trophée de I'Essor in Mauléon, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, finishing 17th some 30 seconds behind his race-winning team mate, Jack Brough.
As Brough was up the road, Meehan was confined to team duties blocking for him; the Irish rider eventually finishing in the peloton that sprinting for 5th.
More to come later.
