One of the country’s most exciting prospects, Ryan Mullen, took the biggest road race victory of his young career when he soloed to a stunning win at the National Championships at Multyfarnham, Co. Westmeath yesterday.

Clemens Fankhauser of the Austria Tirol Cycling Team scooped the biggest victory of his career in Skerries yesterday when he won the An Post Rás.

Almost 10 years to the day since Mayo’s Davy O’Loughlin claimed an incredible solo stage win atop Carrick-On-Suir’s Seskin Hill in the latter stages of the An Post Rás, Austrian powerhouse Markus Eibegger did something remarkably similar in yesterday’s gruelling journey from Clonakilty.

The An Post Rás saw one of its most dramatic days in recent memory unfold on the road from Cahersiveen to Clonakilty yesterday when the yellow jersey lost over eight minutes — and a new set of contenders emerged.

The An Post-Chain reaction team may have fielded just two Irishmen out of a possible five in its line-up for this year’s An Post Rás, but it is the Belgian-based squad who drew first blood on stage one into Roscommon yesterday.

Feohanagh-Castlemahon (Limerick) 2-10 Drom-Inch (Tipperary) 3-6

A 13-year-old Sligo student fended off strong competition from older teenagers and young adults to be crowned overall winner of the National Drugs Media Awards.

Ireland’s Sam Bennett took a brilliant second place on Stage Two of the Tour of Britain yesterday, only pipped on the line by Gerald Ciolek of Team MTN-Qhubeka.

Sam Bennett capped a brilliant overall victory in the Suir Valley 3-Day last night when he won the final stage on the punishing uphill finish just outside Clonmel.

The An Post Chain Reaction outfit are the men to beat in this weekend’s Suir Valley 3-Day in Clonmel, Tipperary.

Carrick-on-Suir sprinter Sam Bennett delivered the An Post Chain Reaction team’s second stage win of this year’s An Post Rás when he outgunned Dane Morten Ollegaard (Blue Water Cycling), Polish rider Marcin Bialablocki (Team UK Youth) and the rest of the peloton in a mass bunch sprint to the line at the end of stage three in Listowel yesterday.

Sean Downey finished best of the Irish yesterday in the U23 European Time Trial Championships in Goes, Holland; taking 11th place in the 78-rider field.

There’s a cracking Phil Liggett line from the 1989 World Championships in France when the ITV anchor turns to his American counterpart Brian Malessa and said: “Brian, I think Sean Kelly told Fignon in broad Irish exactly what he thought of that idea,” after Fignon gestured for the Irishman to go to the front of the chase group to catch leader Steve Bauer.

RACE LEADER Gediminas Bagdonas (Belgium An Post/Sean Kelly) thanked Irish team-mate Sam Bennett for helping him hang on to the yellow jersey by the slender margin of 32 seconds as the sixth stage of the An Post Rás ended in Tramore yesterday after an action-packed 104-mile trip from Blarney.

DEAN DOWNING (Britain Rapha Condor Sharp) claimed the first An Post Rás raceleader’s yellow jersey when he edged out Sam Bennett(Belgium An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly) in a ferocious bunch sprint into Portumna yesterday.

DEFENDING champion Nicolas Roche, his cousin Daniel Martin who won the title a couple of years ago, three-time winner David O’Loughlin and another former winner, David McCann will line up for the national road race championships in Sligo tomorrow.

The man killed in a single-vehicle crash in Ardee, Co Louth last night has been identified as 31-year-old Paul Healion, a leading cyclist who had been due to compete in this week's Tour of Ireland as a member of the national team.

NICOLAS ROCHE (Ag2r) will wear the Irish road race champion’s jersey to the start of the Tour de France in Monaco next weekend although he was still awaiting confirmation from his team last night following his exciting victory in the Elite Road Race championship at Dunboyne yesterday.

DAVID O’LOUGHLIN (An Post/Sean Kelly) attempts to win the Elite road race championship for a fourth time at Dunboyne on Sunday.

CHRIS NEWTON has the opportunity to join the legends of cycling over the coming week by winning the FBD Insurance Rás for a third time and John Herety, manager of the British Rapha Condor team, admitted on the eve of Irish cycling’s showpiece that the former world champion and three-time Olympic medallist has that as his ambition.

PAUL HEALION (South Dublin) won the senior men’s national time trial title in the absence of the professional riders at Newcastlewest last night.

DAVID O’LOUGHLIN (Navigators Insurance) dug deep into his vast reserves of experience and knowledge to win the national road race championship in spectacular, if not dramatic, fashion in Waterford yesterday where he outsprinted a six-man leading group for his third title.

Injuries and the holiday season have forced Monaghan manager Seamus McEneaney into naming an experimental side for Friday's Tommy Murphy Cup quarter-final against Louth (Dundalk, throw-in 7.30pm).

A PROPOSED €75 million redevelopment of Douglas Village Shopping Centre has been given the green light by county planners.