Roche Jnr looking to succeed where his famous father failed

NICOLAS ROCHE bids to succeed in one of the few races his famous father, Stephen, failed to win when he lines up for the national road race championship in Waterford on Sunday.

His father won the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France and the world championships in the same year to merit a place among a handful of cycling legends but he never won his own national championship.

On Sunday, Nicolas, who made his debut in the Giro d’Italia this year, lines up among the favourites along with his cousin, Daniel Martin, son of the English international Neil Martin, who was a top 10 finisher last year. But he faces the strongest field in recent years.

Comeragh CC, who promote the event, would like to see their home grown hero, Ciaran Power, win the title for the first time. In fact this is probably the only domestic event that the Waterford man has failed to win, having won the FBD Insurance Ras twice as well as a number of stages in that event.

He has been placed a number of times and would be a clear favourite going into Sunday’s showpiece were it not for the fact that his Navigators team-mate, David O’Loughlin, who is a former winner of the title, has been going so well in recent times. And he is quick to point out that while he would like to win the race on his own turf this is a big race for everyone.

“It is the national championship and everybody wants to win it,” he insisted. “But the fact that it is in Waterford makes it that bit extra special for me and, of course I would love to win it. I have been second twice but, overall, I have not gone that well in the national championships.’’

Another who should have good knowledge of the course is Brian Kenneally. He won two stages and was second in another in this year’s FBD Insurance Ras, won Ras Mumhan and dominated the early season races.

We have not seen much of him since the Rás, but if he turns up on the line in that type of form then he will be difficult to beat while Rory Wyley (Dan Morrissey Carrick Wheelers) is another with plenty of local knowledge and the strength and courage to make use of it.

Another Ras hero, Páidi O’Brien, who finished second on three stages and then second overall, has already claimed his place among the favourites. He was third behind David McCann last year when he won the under-23 title.

McCann will be back defending and looking for another title to add to his string and cannot be ruled out and if Eugene Moriarty can rediscover his form he could be a contender. He had the silver medal snatched from him by Morgan Fox who finished unbelievably fast when the race was last held in Waterford.

Mark Cassidy, a team mate of Paidi O’Brien in the Murphy and Gunn/Sean Kelly squad, also had a great Rás until taken ill on the penultimate day and would be following in the cycle tracks of his famous father, Philip, if he was to win.

The junior race could develop into a thriller between Sam Bennett (Dan Morrissey Carrick Wheelers) who beat a strong field to win the Drumm Cup in Castleisland (where he outsprinted Michael Hennessy from Fermoy, Denis Dunworth (Killorglin Credid Union) and Tosh Lavery’s son, Philip).

The women’s road championship will be held in Carrick-on-Suir on Saturday when Siobhan Dervan will be the big favourite to win her third successive title. Main opposition will come from Louise Moriarty who won the Tield Winge Grand Prix in Belgium a week ago and Jenny Fay and Julia O’Hagan, riding for the Rapha Condor team, who have just finished the Grande Bonde Feminine Internationale — the women’s equivalent of the Tour de France.