Latest news with #RásTailteann
Irish Examiner
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Kimber claims Rás Tailteann title by narrowest of margins from Jamie Meehan
Stage 5 of Rás Tailteann 2025 brought the curtain down on a dramatic and high-speed week of racing, with the final 142.8km from Kildare Town to Bective offering a fitting finale. The day belonged to Josh Charlton (Great Britain CT), who stormed clear to take the stage win, but it was George Kimber (Cycling Club Isle of Man) who emerged victorious in the general classification, claiming the Bective Stud Yellow Jersey and the title of Rás Tailteann champion. Ireland's Jamie Meehan and Odhrán Doogan took second and third place overall. The stage began at a furious pace with a group of four riders quickly going clear. The quartet of Cameron McLaren, Dean Harvey, Daire Feeley and Patrick O'Loughlin opened up a gap of over a minute in the early kilometres despite wet and greasy road conditions. Behind them, the bunch remained cautious, with the yellow jersey George Kimber sitting deep in the peloton. As the race passed through Longwood, Feeley began to assert himself, clearly aiming to claw back his deficit on the general classification. By the time the riders reached Trim, he had gone clear with Harvey, and soon after, the break swelled to 14 riders including key names such as Mark Downey, Tom Martin, Ronan O'Connor, and Josh Charlton sitting 32 seconds off yellow at the start of the day, spent significant time on the front and was the virtual leader on the road with three laps of the Bective circuit to go. The final Category 3 KOM at Quarry Hill saw Gilsenan take max points ahead of Feeley, O'Connor and Pritchard. The peloton, led by UCD and Ride Revolution, began to close the gap, and attacks began to fly as riders sensed the final opportunity to alter the general classification. With just over 10km to go, Odhrán Doogan (77 – Cycling Ulster) launched a late solo move in a final bid to take yellow. However, Kimber remained calm, backed by his remaining teammates, and managed to control the margin to secure overall victory by five seconds. At the front, Josh Charlton had timed his move to perfection, sprinting clear of the reduced front group to take a fine stage win in Bective.
Irish Times
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
George Kimber takes 2025 Rás Tailteann title after nail-biting final day
George Kimber endured a nerve-racking final day of racing to win the Rás Tailteann on Sunday, finishing safely in the main bunch in Bective after a day of dangerous attacks. Compatriot Josh Charlton took the 142.8km final stage, going solo from a big breakaway and holding off a hard-chasing peloton. Isle of Man Cycling Club rider Kimber came under pressure just 10km into the 142.8km stage from Kildare Town, with the 2022 Rás winner Daire Feeley (Clare: Burren CC) going clear with Dean Harvey (Team Ireland) and becoming virtual race leader. Holding a gap of over a minute for much of the stage, those two were joined by a dozen others before the first of four 12km finishing laps. Charlton attacked on the penultimate lap and went solo, while Odhran Doogan (Cycling Ulster) bridged across to the chasers inside the last 12km. READ MORE He had started the day third overall, just 22 seconds back and put Kimber under further pressure, but a furious chase saw all bar Charlton hauled back before the end. 'It feels amazing,' final yellow jersey Kimber told The Irish Times. 'It's unreal. I don't know how I pulled it off at the end there. I thought the race was gone, but I just stuck in there and it came back.' Josh Charlton (Team GB) wins the final stage of the Rás Tailteann. Photograph: Lorraine O'Sullivan Former individual pursuit record holder Charlton used his track racing speed to win by 58 seconds. Irish riders John Buller (Down: Banbridge CC Specsavers) and Odhran Doogan (Cycling Ulster) were to the fore in the bunch sprint, taking second and third on the stage. Team Ireland rider Jamie Meehan had hoped to overcome his overnight deficit of five seconds but while he jumped away on the final lap, he was unable to hold off a hard-chasing Kimber. 'The tactic today was to try and find six seconds,' he said. It was a really hard day, but we tried. We got away in the last lap with about three quarters of a lap to go, and gave it everything. It's a bit of a flat circuit for a 57 kilo man and he was able to come across.' He took second overall, while previous race leader Doogan was third. Meehan was the best under-23 and Doogan the best county rider. The latter said after stage one that he didn't envisage being in the running for the overall victory, but finished far closer than he had anticipated. 'I'm very happy,' he said. 'Coming in, I don't think my expectations were as high as what I've achieved. I was obviously disappointed to lose yellow yesterday, but I went out swinging today and gave it everything.' It was an exciting end to the 70th edition of the race, and one which gave Meehan, Doogan and others important boosts in confidence and experience.
The 42
25-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
George Kimber defends yellow in tense final stage as Josh Charlton takes win
JOSH CHARLTON STORMED clear to take Stage Five but it was George Kimber (Cycling Club Isle of Man) who emerged victorious in the general classification to claim the Bective Stud Yellow Jersey and the title of Rás Tailteann champion. The final 142.8km from Kildare Town to Bective offered a fitting finale to bring the curtain down on a dramatic week. Advertisement The stage began at a furious pace with a group of four riders quickly going clear: Cameron McLaren (26 – TAAP Kalas), Dean Harvey (66 – Team Ireland), Daire Feeley (101 – Burren CC) and Patrick O'Loughlin (116 – Pinergy–Orwell Wheelers). The quartet opened up a gap of over a minute in the early kilometres despite wet and greasy road conditions. Behind them, the bunch remained cautious, with the yellow jersey Kimber sitting deep in the peloton. As the race passed through Longwood, Feeley began to assert himself, clearly aiming to claw back his deficit on the general classification. By the time the riders reached Trim, he had gone clear with Harvey, and soon after, the break swelled to 14 riders. The final Category 3 KOM at Quarry Hill saw Adam Gilsenan take max points ahead of Feeley, Ronan O'Connor and Pritchard. The peloton, led by UCD and Ride Revolution, began to close the gap, and attacks began to fly as riders sensed the final opportunity to alter the general classification. With just over 10km to go, Odhrán Doogan (77 – Cycling Ulster) launched a late solo move in a final bid to take yellow. However, Kimber remained calm, backed by his remaining teammates, and managed to control the margin to secure overall victory by five seconds. At the front, Charlton had timed his move to perfection, sprinting clear of the reduced front group to take a fine stage win in Bective.
RTÉ News
25-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
George Kimber claims 2025 Rás Tailteann title by four seconds from Jamie Meehan
Stage five of Rás Tailteann 2025 brought the curtain down on a dramatic and high-speed week of racing, with the final 142.8km from Kildare Town to Bective offering a fitting finale. The day belonged to Josh Charlton (Great Britain CT), who stormed clear to take the stage win, but it was George Kimber (Cycling Club Isle of Man) who emerged victorious in the general classification, claiming the Bective Stud Yellow Jersey and the title of Rás Tailteann champion. Ireland's Jamie Meehan and Odhrán Doogan ended up in second and third place overall. The stage began at a furious pace with a group of four riders quickly going clear. The quartet of Cameron McLaren, Dean Harvey, Daire Feeley and Patrick O'Loughlin opened up a gap of over a minute in the early kilometres despite wet and greasy road conditions. Behind them, the bunch remained cautious, with the yellow jersey George Kimber sitting deep in the peloton. As the race passed through Longwood, Feeley began to assert himself, clearly aiming to claw back his deficit on the general classification. By the time the riders reached Trim, he had gone clear with Harvey, and soon after, the break swelled to 14 riders including key like Mark Downey, Tom Martin, Ronan O'Connor and Josh Charlton. Feeley, sitting 32 seconds off yellow at the start of the day, spent significant time on the front and was the virtual leader on the road with three laps of the circuit to go. The final Category 3 KOM at Quarry Hill saw Gilsenan take max points ahead of Feeley, O'Connor and Pritchard. The peloton, led by UCD and Ride Revolution, began to close the gap, and attacks began to fly as riders sensed the final opportunity to alter the general classification. With just over 10km to go, Odhrán Doogan launched a late solo move in a final bid to take yellow. However, Kimber remained calm, backed by his remaining teammates, and managed to control the margin to secure overall victory by five seconds. At the front, Charlton had timed his move to perfection, sprinting clear of the reduced front group to take a fine stage win in Bective.
Irish Times
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Rás Tailteann: Final day battle in store as George Kimber takes fourth stage and yellow jersey
George Kimber scooped both the stage win and yellow jersey in Saturday's penultimate stage of the Rás Tailteann , winning a three-man sprint after a dramatic day of racing to Mountrath. The Isle of Man Cycling Club rider outsprinted Team Ireland's Jamie Meehan and Dean Harvey. Those three plus Adam Lewis (USA Team Skyline) went clear of the other overall contenders on the category one Wolftrap climb, which topped out just 14 kilometres from the finish. Lewis lost contact but the other three floored it to the line, reaching it almost half a minute ahead of the chasers. Kimber was then clearly quickest in the sprint, powering in ahead of Meehan and two seconds in front of Harvey. Overnight race leader Odhran Doogan (Cycling Ulster) trailed in as part of the next group 28 seconds behind and yielded the yellow jersey as a result. It passed to Kimber, who had been fourth overall starting the stage. READ MORE 'I'm just so happy,' the later told RTÉ. 'Obviously, with such a prestigious race, I'm taking a lot of pride right now. I'm sure it will take a while to sink in, but I'm just so happy to finally finish it off.' Starting in Ennis, the stage was the shortest of the race at 128.1km. Several big breaks got clear, with one 14-rider move including Doogan, and a subsequent one including the 2024 Rás champion Dom Jackson (UK: Foran CT). However, this was overhauled by Harvey, Meehan, Kimber and Lewis on the climb. Team Ireland manager Martyn Irvine later said of the day's tactics: 'It was 99 per cent exactly how we wanted to go today. It's bittersweet not getting the jersey, obviously. 'I knew our two lads are the best climbers in the race. We just had one strong guy we couldn't get rid of, and it's scuppered our plans. What should be a really good day feels really shit now, to be honest.' Things are still very tight overall, with Kimber only holding a five-second advantage over Meehan. Doogan is at 22 seconds and there are 11 others within a minute, making things far from over. Indeed Irvine knows well how things can change. Two years ago the-then Team Ireland rider Dillon Corkery went into the final stage seventh overall, 19 seconds off yellow. Guided by Irvine from the team car, the Corkman got clear in a breakaway and finished over two and a half minutes clear of the main bunch and British race leader Conor McGoldrick. The dramatic late move won him the Rás. Irvine's riders will try to follow the same template on Sunday. 'We've done it a couple years ago with Dillon,' he said. 'So everything's to play for. But we need some weather on our side. We want hard winds, that kind of day.' The concluding stage of the Rás Tailteann leaves Kildare town just before noon on Sunday and covers 155.7 mainly flat kilometres to Bective. Kimber is in the driving seat now, but the final yellow jersey is far from decided. Rás Tailteann Stage 4 results Ennis to Mountrath: 1 George Kimber (Isle of Man Cycling Club) 2:39.47, 2 J Meehan (Team Ireland) same time, 3 D Harvey (Team Ireland) at 2 sec, 4 S Brenes (Mexico: Canel's – Java) at 28 sec, 5 M Teggart (Down: Banbridge CC Specsavers) General Classification: 1 George Kimber (Isle of Man Cycling Club) 13:35.13, 2 J Meehan (Team Ireland) at 5 sec, 3 O Doogan (Cycling Ulster) at 22 sec, 4 M Cigala (Carlow: Dan Morrissey Pissei) at 25 sec, 5 S Brenes (Mexico: Canel's – Java) at 28 sec, 6 D Feeley (Clare: Burren CC) at 32 sec, 7 M Teggart (Down: Banbridge CC Specsavers) at 33 sec, 8 A Lewis (USA: Team Skyline), 9 M Richard (USA: Good Guys Racing NYC), 10 H Macfarlane (UK: Ride Revolution) Points classification: Sebastian Brenes Mountains: Adam Lewis Under-23 rider: Jamie Meehan Irish County rider: Odhran Doogan Cycling Ireland Category 2: Ben Murphy National/International Team: UK: DAS Richardsons Irish County/Provincial Team: Down: Banbridge CC Specsavers
