Brammeier notches remarkable double

MATT BRAMMEIER (HTC Highroad) completed a remarkable weekend when he reclaimed the elite road race championship title yesterday while also taking the national time-trial crown on Friday night at Emyvale, Monaghan.

The Liverpool-born Irishman, whose grandmother hails from Connemara, out-sprinted Dan Martin (Team Garmin Transitions) to the line after seven laps of a testing 25-kilometre circuit.

David McCann (Giant Kenda Asia) rounded out the podium with a fine third place while Nicolas Roche, Ireland’s sole participant in this year’s Tour de France, was next in fourth.