IRISH CYCLING TEAM ANNOUNCED FOR PARA-CYCLING TRACK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

DOUBLE World Road Racing Champions Katie-George Dunlevy and Eve McCrystal will lead a team of 7 Irish bikes at the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, taking place from March 14 to March 17, 2019.

Dunlevy, piloted by Ireland’s National Road Race Champion McCrystal, won last year’s Para-cycling World Championships Road Race and Time Trial in Italy, retaining the titles the pair took in 2017, and adding to the Paralympics Gold in Time Trial won at Rio 2016.

With Tokyo 2020 on the horizon, Dunlevy and McCrystal will take on this week’s Kilo and Sprint events, as well as competing in a new Mixed Team Kilo Relay with Martin Gordon and his pilot Eamon Byrne.

Gordon and Byrne, who also ride individual Kilo, are leading hopes for the Men’s Sprint, having in December landed Silver against Great Britain at the Track World Cup round in London.

Also new to the Para-cycling schedule is an Omnium competition, which MC2 riders Chris Burns and Colin Lynch, and WC3 rider Richael Timothy will feature in, riding the individual Kilo, Pursuit, and Scratch Races, as well as the Omnium’s Flying 200m.

The Individual events are still the primary events, but there is then a combined Omnium medal available based on performances in those three events and the 200m.

Completing Ireland’s line up are Peter Ryan and pilot Sean Hahessy, who will ride the Pursuit and Kilo, and Ronan Grimes, who takes part in Kilo, Pursuit, and Scratch.

The Irish Cycling Team for the 2019 UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships, Apeldoorn:

Rider (Category, Events)

Katie-George Dunlevy & pilot Eve McCrystal (Women’s Tandem, Pursuit, Kilo, Sprint, Mixed Kilo Relay)

Martin Gordon & pilot Eamon Byrne (Men’s Tandem, Kilo, Sprint, Mixed Kilo Relay)

Peter Ryan & pilot Sean Hahessy (Men’s Tandem, Pursuit, Kilo)

Ronan Grimes (MC4, Kilo, Pursuit, Scratch)

Chris Burns (MC2, Omnium: Kilo, Pursuit, Scratch, Flying 200m)

Colin Lynch (MC2, Omnium: Kilo, Pursuit, Scratch, Flying 200m)

Richael Timothy (WC3, Omnium: Kilo, Pursuit, Scratch, Flying 200m)

SCHEDULE: UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships 2019 Program