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Mayo Centra Team Launched For An Post Rás
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| Padraig Marrey |
For the first time ever Mayo cycling will get a big boost with 2 teams competing in the An Post Rás.
The Mayo Centra team to compete in the An Post Rás was announced after months of hard preparation and racing.
The squad of seven, comprised of Western lakes and Covey Wheelers Westport club members, have gone through a full transformation from normal club racers who competed locally to full fledge elite racers. As part of the training the squad has already stepped up to compete at International level races like Rás Mumhan (Kerry 4 day) and the Tour of Ulster (Ulster 3 day). Having the opportunity to race in the 60th edition of the 8 day An Post Rás is the reward for all their hard work.
The team will be led by the experienced Padraig Marrey who headed up the project as coach and organiser and will under take to complete his 10th Rás. More>>>
Bagdonas Returns To Defend Title As Four Irish Riders Selected
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| Gediminas Bagdonas Rás Winner 2011 |
An Post Sean Kelly team manager Kurt Bogaert today named his team for the 60th edition of the Rás, which starts in Dunboyne next Sunday, 20th May. Four Irish riders have been named in the side, namely Sam Bennett, Conor McConvey, Ronan McLaughlin and Sean Downey, while Lithuanian strongman Gediminas Bagdonas returns to defend his 2011 title.
The Belgian based side have been in good form coming into the race with Bagdonas taking second place at the Omloop der Kempen (1.2) in the Netherlands last weekend and all four Irish riders putting in solid team performances to ensure a second place finish for teammate Kenneth Van Bilsen at the Circuit de Wallonie (1.2) in Belgium.
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| Sam Bennett, National Under 23 Champion |
Team manager Kurt Bogaerts admitted that the promising form that some of his riders have shown in the last few weeks made his team selection a very tough decision.
“Deciding on the team for this year’s Rás was not an easy task. It is a race in which all of the riders want to be involved in, but unfortunately I can only select five to compete”, Bogaerts said.
While he also felt that the team’s experience in Bagdonas’ overall win last year will be a huge boost ahead of this year’s race.
“I think experience will play a vital role in the outcome of this year’s Rás. Bennett and McLaughlin were both involved in Bagdonas’ overall win last year, while McConvey finished top U23 rider and 4th overall in 2010 and Sean Downey was the highest placed Irish rider last year.”
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Strong Teams From Denmark, Norway And Morocco For An Post Rás
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| Magnus Borresen Norway |
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| Christian Jersild Denmark |
With time ticking down to the start of the 2012 An Post Rás in sixteen day’s time, three more strong international teams have been announced for the race.
Pro teams (UCI Continental) Denmark Blue Water Cycling and Norway Team ONECO Mesterhus and the first-ever appearance of a Moroccan national team raise the number of international squads announced to fifteen, and point towards this year’s race as being an extremely competitive and unpredictable one.
Norway Oneco Mesterhus will be led by Magnus Børresen, the 2010 Norwegian under 23 champion, who was second last year in the 1.2 ranked Rogaland Grand Prix.
He will be backed up by 2012 Tour of Malta stage winner Andreas Landa, 2011 Amore Vita competitor Kristian Forbord, 2011 Norwegian under 23 championship bronze medallist Christian Hannestad and Krister Hagen, winner last year of the Tonsberg four day race.
“We go to Ireland with a goal to win stages and at least one jersey,” said team manager Lars Junker. “We have very good sprinters and climbers so we really want to get some of the jerseys.
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| Lassie Norman Hansen Denmark Former Junior World Champion |
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| Adil Jelloul Morocco |
“To lead these crazy Vikings we got a good and experienced captain in Magnus Børresen; we want to take some scalps because that’s an old Norwegian Viking tradition!”
After racing in Spain, Malta, Holland, Denmark and Norway, the team will do the 1.1-ranked Rogaland GP on May 13th as its final big preparation event.
Scandinavian neighbours Denmark Blue Water Cycling will feature the experienced 34 year old Jacob Nielsen, who was second in the world junior road race championships back in 1996 and has won many UCI races since.
Former junior world track champion Lasse Norman Hansen is also on the team, and travels here after being up against Ireland’s Martyn Irvine in the omnium event at the world championships in Melbourne. He was third there, sealing his place alongside Irvine in the Olympics, and will seek to ride strongly in the An Post Rás as part of his buildup for London 2012. More>>>
Swiss Team Promise Attacking Role in An Post Rás
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| Florian Salzinger |
As the days tick down to the start of An Post Rás on Sunday 20th May, the Swiss pro (UCI Continental) team, Atlas Personal – Jakroo, has confirmed they will ride in the big 8 day international cycle race. The Swiss out-fit join teams from Britain, Denmark, France and New Zealand, already announced to compete against each other.
The five riders selected by the team management should be in optimum shape as they are currently on a programme of races to prepare specifically for the Rás.
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| Pirmin Lang |
Swiss rider Pirmin Lang (23) and the 27 year old Frenchman, Nicolas Baldo will be the protected riders, having performed well in the past. Lang won the 1.2-ranked Antwerpse Havenpijl last year and was also fifth on a stage of the Tour of China (2.1). Baldo rode well in the 2010 Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour, netting second on a stage and in the overall classification, and also finished second on a stage there in 2011. His runner-up slots also include one in the 2010 La Roue Tourangelle. Those near-misses will sharpen his determination to pick up a win in Ireland.
“Our team captains will be Pirmin Lang and Nicolas Baldo,” said the German Florian Salzinger, who is both a rider on the team and involved in bringing the team to Ireland to race. More>>>
Five Strong Britiah Teams Aim For An Post Rás Success
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| Peter Hawkins I.G. Sigma Sport |
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| Philip Lavery Node4 Giordana Racing |
Winning British squads from two previous editions of the An Post Ràs will race as a strong set of UK registered teams travelling to Ireland for next month’s race.
The Rapha Condor Sharp team, 2009 victors with Simon Richardson are returning and targeting success. So too are the UK Youth Pro Cycling squad, which helped Alexander Wetterhall to success in 2010 (then titled Team Sprocket).
They are joined by the Node 4-Giordana Racing team, IG Sigma Sport and Metaltek-Scott. Together the five squads will be amongst the strongest in the race, and will play a major part in shaping the final outcome.
The Rapha Condor Sharp team will be led by John Herety, a former professional who has guided several riders to Rás victories. UK-based Irish rider Felix English will be one of his five riders. English recently won the final stage of the Tour of the North and is psyched to ride well in his first edition of the top Irish event.
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| Stephen Halpin Metaltk- Scott |
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| Felix English Rapha Condor Sharp |
Luke Grivell-Mellor, who took the Under 23 classification of the Tour of North, will also be part of the team, as well Richard Handley, Mike Cuming and Christopher Jennings.
“It is my intention to bring a young team, which is all part of a change of focus for the Rapha Condor Sharp Team in 2012,” said Herety, who will be one of the most experienced managers in the race. “We will be targeting the Irish Sports Council U23 White Jersey Competition.”
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McCann And Olympic-Bound Irvine To Lead Taiwan-RTS Racing Team In An Post Rás
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| David McCann Rás Winner 2004 |
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| Martyn Irvine Olympic-Bound |
Days after he sealed his qualification for the Olympic Games by finishing seventh at the track world championships in Melbourne, Ireland’s Martyn Irvine has been confirmed as part of a strong Taiwan – RTS Racing team for the An Post Rás.
The 26 year old will join up with another accomplished Irish rider, past Rás winner David McCann, who over a long career has been one of Ireland’s best international competitors.
The team will be completed by the 28 year old Scottish climber Alex Coutts, who won the Tour of Thailand in 2008, plus the Taiwanese duo Chang Wei Yi and Huang Chin Lung.
“Stage wins will be the first priority,” said multiple national champion McCann, who won the overall title in 2004 and who has taken multiple stage wins in the race. “I’m not sure if the team would be able to defend the jersey. But if it works out to be able to go for the overall, then why not?”
Irvine has focused largely on track racing in recent years, this dedication leading to his qualification for the London Olympics in the multi-event Omnium discipline, but has also clocked up important road results. He won stage seven in last year’s An Post Rás with a superb solo attack, and has also been national criterium champion for the past two years. More>>>
German And Dutch Teams Add To Strong International Lineup For An Post Rás
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| Michael Vingerling Koga Holland |
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| Kai Exner Germany Bike Aid |
With a month and a half remaining before the start of the 2012 An Post Rás, the Germany Bike Aid cycling team and the Netherlands Koga cycling team have been confirmed as the third and fourth of the international squads for this year’s race.
Both will be making their debuts in the world-ranked event, and are determined to post strong showings in the eight-day race.
The German Bike Aid team will be led by the all-rounder Christian Poth and the sprinter Marius Prünte. The latter won five races last year and clocked up thirty top ten placings; he was also the regional champion of Nordrhein-Westfalen and finished sixteenth in German Road Championship 2011.
Poth is an all-rounder who won the Köln-Schuld-Frechen in 2010. They will be joined by nineteen year old Kai Exner, who in the past finished second and third in the German junior time trial championship, former GP Ostergaaard Lux winner Matthias Schnapka and the climber Timo Schäfer, a multiple regional champion in road race and cyclo cross.
“The goal of the team for An Post Rás is to be aggressive, to put our riders in breakaway groups and to take high placings in at least one stage,” said Schäfer, a rider who also has a role as the team's co-ordinator. More>>>
Ambitious Czech Republic AC Sparta Praha Team Returns To An Past Rás
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| Ondrej Pavek. |
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| Rostislav Krotky |
Two years after the Czech rider Jan Barta placed a fine third overall in the race, a squad from that country will line out in this year’s An Post Rás with big ambitions.
The AC Sparta Praha has confirmed both its participation and its likely lineup for the world-ranked race, and will draw on its own previous knowledge of the event.
In 2007 several of its riders took top ten placings on stages, including third place finishes on stages one, four and seven by Petr Pucelik, Tomas Hruby and Ondrej Pavek. Josef Soukup was also fourth in the final leg of the race.
Of those, Pavek will return this year, as will Rostislav Krotky, who was third on a stage in 2005.
General manager Zdenek Rubas is clear that they and the rest of the all-Czech five-man team will be ambitious in their approach. More>>>
Ambitious New Zealand Team Confirmed For An Post Rás
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| Taylor Gunman |
Having achieved considerable success in the 2011 An Post Rás, New Zealand will return this May targeting aggressive performances and stage victories in the Irish world-ranked event.
The country’s national team has split in two with some of those who competed in the event last year focusing completely on the London Olympics. As a result they will be on a different race programme, meaning that New Zealand’s promising under 23 competitors will be those who will travel to Ireland with ambition.
“We love the An Post Ras, having had terrific experiences and success at this race. We are privileged to get the invite,” states New Zealand’s Olympic team manager Stephen Connell.
“The team did well last year with Aaron Gate in the white jersey and Shane Archbold in the green and a stage win with Myron Simpson. They are part of the Olympic squad this year and will be part of a road programme based in Belgium and France.
“With those focusing on the Games, this time round we will be sending some of the New Zealand young guns to the Rás.” More>>>
Race Rules & Regulations 2012
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