LANCE ARMSTRONG has guaranteed worldwide interest in this year’s Tour of Ireland by confirming that he will contest the event which takes place from August 19-23 with stage ends yet to be announced.

THE Shay Elliott Memorial Classic in Bray tomorrow is the big event this weekend with the evergreen Malcolm Elliott returning to defend his title.

A new professional cycle race is set to take place in Ireland, it was revealed today.

ROGER AIKEN (Louth Safe Cycling), who turned 24 three days earlier, got a belated birthday present yesterday in the form of his first ever stage win as the FBD Insurance RAS got under way with an 84 mile stage from Dublin to Emyvale.

DAVID McCANN finally earned himself a place among Irish cycling's legends by claiming victory in this year's FBD Milk Ras, fulfilling an ambition he harboured since he was runner-up to Tommy Evans eight years ago.

IN SPITE of a 39th place finish in the Carlsberg Malaysian Open at the weekend, Padraig Harrington remains, by quite a distance, the leading Irishman in the European order of merit.

CIARAN POWER may have gone into this year’s FBD Milk Rás as the defending champion but he achieved his main goal for this year yesterday by landing a stage win in a ferocious sprint into Ballina to end an eventful 93-mile third stage from Clifden.

IRELAND’S Darren Clarke returns to the scene of his greatest triumph this week when he contests the $5 million Accenture World Match Play Championship at La Costa in California.