Personality and telepathy as important as pace in the velodrome 

It’s the first time an Irish squad has scaled such heights and if this progression comes with pressure, then the serene cyclist is hiding it nicely.

Erin Creighton, Mia Griffin, Alice Sharpe, Kelly Murphy and Lara Gillespie during the Team Ireland Paris 2024 team announcement for Cycling at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Blanchardstown, Dublin. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Mia Griffin tells the tale of her first encounter with a bicycle and as with most Kilkenny stories, it opens with familiar words: ‘once upon a time there was a hurling club.’ 

“I used to cycle from the house to camogie training which was about a mile on a really shit bike,” Griffin remembers. “I think I went on one ride with my dad once and crashed but other than that was never on a bike.”