Conroy Finishes Well in Tricky Conditions in Heusden - Zolder
Irish cyclo-cross rider David Conroy has finished an impressive 48th place at the 2016 UCI Junior Cyclo-cross World Championships in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium today. The Wicklow man raced a technical race in tricky conditions to complete eight laps of the 3km course on a day where many riders failed to finish. An Post Chain-Reaction rider David Montgomery competes in the U23 event tomorrow morning at 10am Irish time. The 2016 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships run from the 30-31 January in Belgium.
Seventeen year old Conroy, who rides for Scott Eurocycles.com, enjoyed the technical aspect of the course today, after a night of rain saying:
“It was raining all night, and the course changed throughout the race, this suited me as it made it more technical and slowed the race down, a lot less people finished the race than started it! The fast descents played to my strengths, it’s where I did most of my passing and made up placings.”
At the start of the race Conroy was placed 30th on the grid, and avoided a big crash:
“The start was mental; people going for gaps that weren’t there. There was one big crash that I had to get off the bike to avoid. I raced two World Cups and even at them there was more order at the start. The course is very different to what we race back home. I think most riders would opt for a mountain bike on some parts of the course here.”
Watch the full race here:
Conroy found the experience beneficial:
“It’s a great experience. I love every race I do. They motivate you and you get faster and get better at riding them the more that you do, there’s only positives in going to them. It’s great having my coach Andy (Layhe) here, and the support from Simon (Curry) and Donal (O’Brien) has been brilliant. They do everything I want and more. Today there was a huge Irish contingent here, some of that is due to the fact there are riders racing. The cheering from every corner of the track really lifted me.”
Cyclo-cross has been growing in popularity in Ireland over the past few years, and is especially popular with younger riders like Conroy, who will now switch his focus to mountain biking before he gets ready for the transition to the U23 ranks in Cyclo-cross next season.
“I love everything about cyclo-cross, it’s such a super sport, not as technical as downhill racing and not as tactical as road racing, but combines everything from cycling. I just love riding it, the crowds, the tracks, the whole discipline really appeals to me. It’s great to see it taking off, and great to see Cycling Ireland sending a team to it this year, as it keeps pushing people nationally and internationally. Who knows, maybe we will see a World Champion in it someday.”
Next up in Belgium is David Montgomery, racing at 10am Irish time tomorrow (Sunday 31st January). The 2016 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships run from 30th- 31st January in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. Highlights of the competition will be on Eurosport, with full footage being available for live viewing on the UCI YouTube Channel.
RESULTS Junior Men Cyclo-Cross World Championships:
1. Jens Dekker (NED)
2. Michael Crispin (FRA)
3. Thomas Bonnet (FRA)
48 David Conroy (IRL)
Irish Team:
JUNIOR MEN:
David Conroy (Scott Eurocycles.com)
U23 MEN:
David Montgomery (An Post-Chainreaction)
TEAM MANAGER
Andy Layhe (Trail Demons CC)
ASSISTANT MANAGER/MECHANIC
Simon Curry (Banbridge CC)