Rory Townsend wins national road race for first time
NEW CHAMP: Rory Townsend during the recent Rás Tailteann. Pic : Lorraine O'Sullivan
Rory Townsend is the Elite Irish National road race champion for the first time in his career after a sparkling performance in today’s title race in Kanturk, Co. Cork.
The 26-year old from Kingston Upon Thames in the UK came into the 163-kilometre contest as one of the favourites but knew he needed to be at his very best to come out on top against local rider and WorldTour professional Eddie Dunbar (Ineos Grenadiers), Ben Healy (EF Education - EasyPost) and a host of other challengers.
Having won a stage of Ras Tailteann and finished fourth overall last week, Townsend knew he had the legs to contend, but on a tough course against a stacked field he needed everything to fall in his favour.
“It’s absolutely mental, I can’t really believe it at the moment,” he said after pulling on the national champion´s jersey. “Just… everything went right today, I’m so glad.”
Townsend grew up in the UK, hence his strong London accent, but qualifies to ride for Ireland through his father David from Lemybrien, Co. Waterford who emigrated to London in the seventies.
He has always felt Irish, and it was during his many Easter holiday and summer visits to Ireland´s cycling heartland of Carrick-on-Suir where he considered switching allegiances.
He never rode for Ireland at any level aside from elite, but since he made the switch to the green of Ireland he has gone on to represent Ireland at the highest level several times, most noticeably at the UCI World Championships in Yorkshire in 2019.
More recently, he was named road captain for the national team at Ras Tailteann, which he earmarked as the ideal prep for yesterday´s showdown.
“I said if I could get through the (Rás) week and have a successful week, but also just stay out of trouble and avoid getting ill and stuff, then I knew I’d be in good shape for this.
“I remember when Ben Healy won the champs (in 2020), he had a similar prep; a good stage race coming into it that year and he was untouchable today. And I was just sort of trying to emulate that today.”
To beat a hyper-motivated Dunbar, he had to be.
“It’s local for him and it’s a shame, like, in a way because I know how much he would have wanted this being a local race. So it’s a shame he didn’t get the chance to really go for it in the end. But, yeah, he was the main guy I was thinking about coming into the race.”
Townsend had to be strategic with his reserves on a miserable afternoon; he knew he wanted to be ahead of Dunbar and hoped the latter would come across, as opposed to chasing the number one contender.
“So I got in a group of four on the second climb of the day,” he said of going clear with eventual silver medal man Cormac Mcgeough (Wildlife Generation) as well as U23 gold medal winner Dean Harvey (Spellman Dublin Port) and last year’s U23 winner John Buller (Amicale Cycliste Bisontine).
“I said to the lads ‘what we need to do is make it to the top of that next climb, that’s our finish line in a way’. And, like I said, things just worked out perfectly.”
Dunbar came across - and used considerable energy in the process - and he helped drive the pace, which proved too strong for Buller who was dropped.
That four ploughed on for the majority of the contest before Dunbar and Harvey eventually faded, to leave two up front.
And sensing Mcgeough was on his last legs, Townsend pressed on solo to the line, with Mcgeough taking second by 23 seconds and a resurgent Ben Healy taking bronze a couple of minutes further back.
The U23 race was incorporated in the elite race, with victory going to 19-year old Dubliner Harvey from Thursday night´s time-trial gold medallist Darren Rafferty (Hagens Berman Axeon) and Archie Ryan (Jumbo-Visma Development Team) completing the podium.
1 R Townsend (WiV SunGod) 3:48:11, C McGeough (Wildlife Generation Pro Cycling) at 26secs, 3 B Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) at 2´25”.
1 D Harvey (Spellman-Dublin Port) 3:50:36, 2 D Rafferty (Hagens Berman Axeon) at s/t, 3 A Ryan (Jumbo-Visma Development Team) at 6´11".
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