Motorcyclist dies during road race

A motorcyclist competing in a road race near Athlone died yesterday evening after his vehicle hit a ditch.

His death came shortly before a separate incident in Co Kerry claimed the life of another motorcyclist and after two other road traffic fatalities, one involving a girl in Co Cork.

Gardaí last night confirmed that a competitor at the Walderstown Road Races near Athlone had crashed in the seventh race at around 1.20pm. The man, understood to be a 20-year-old from Hillsborough in Co Down, was airlifted to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin but died at 5.30pm.