a day ago
Mia Griffin claims victory in national road race cycling championships
Kilkenny woman Griffin, riding for the Switzerland-based Roland team, was part of a ten strong group that dominated proceedings for most of the race.
This front group also contained last year's winner Fiona Mangan (Winspace Orange Seal), Caoimhe O'Brien (Cynicsa), Aoife O'Brien (DAS Hutchinson), Linda Kelly (Spin the Bean), Emma Jeffers (Liv AlUla Jayco), Lucy Benezet Minns (Lotto Ladies), Abi Conway of Westport Covey and Dan Morrissey duo Marine Lenehan and Aine Doherty.
After a cagey affair for much of the day, defending champion Mangan put in a couple of attacks on the final of four 25km laps. This sparked several counter attacks from her breakaway colleagues, none of which stuck until Benezet Minns took off solo with around 12km to go.
A strong time triallist, Benezet Minns opened a gap of 18 seconds as she passed through the finish line and went out onto the 9.4km finishing circuit. Her lead began to dwindle however as the nine chasers got their act together and worked hard to bring her back. Her advantage fell to ten seconds with 5km to go and the junior road race and time trial champion for the past two years was caught just inside the final kilometre.
In the gallop for the line, Kilkenny woman Griffin used her track speed to blitz the sprint and take the title by a bike length from Caoimhe O'Brien, with Marine Lenehan taking the bronze.
Emma Jeffers finished fourth to take the under 23 title from fifth placed Aoife O'Brien with Abi Conway taking the bronze in seventh place.
After an impressive victory in the junior women's time trial championship on Thursday night, Aliyah Rafferty stormed to victory in the junior women's race, finishing over a minute and a half clear of Greta Lawless of Dawson racing who outsprinted Dungarvan's Aoife O'Donovan for silver.
In the earlier junior men's race, Conor Murphy of Caldwell Cycles soloed clear of two breakaway colleagues to add the road race title to the time trial title he claimed on Thursday night despite an early bike change.
Rory Condon of Zappi Racing took silver at 1:22, while France-based Darragh Byrne (AS Villemur Cyclisme) outsprinted Matthew Walls of Lucan for bronze 44 seconds later. James Armstrong, who had been in the three-man break until the dying kilometres took fifth ahead of VC Glendale teammate Toby Sweetman
