Irish Team Ready for Olympic Cycling Road Race
Ireland’s Dan Martin and Nicolas Roche will be competing in the Cycling Road Race at the Olympic Games in Rio this Saturday, 6th August. The Irish riders, who are also cousins, will compete in the 237.5km road race in Fort Copacabana starting at 13.30 Irish time; with the race expected to finish at approximately 19.10, six hours later. The Irish duo have both been performing well this year, with Martin finishing 9th in the Tour de France, and Roche 9th in the recent Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian, a prestigious one day race of similar length to the Olympic course.
This is the third Olympic Games for Roche and Martin’s second, and the excitement of the Olympic Games is high. The Olympic circuit is a route that should suit Martin in particular, with the Etixx Quickstep rider having previously seen success in similar challenging one day races such as the Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour of Lombardy.
The 237.5km road race is considered by many as having the toughest Olympic parcours in many years, and will likely result in a war of attrition for the riders. Starting in Fort Copacabana on the coast the riders take in two separate circuits before finishing back in Fort Copacabana. While both circuits feature considerable climbs, it is the final section that will likely be the decisive part, where the riders tackle a significant 8.5km climb in the 15km loop that will be negotiated 2.5 times.
RTÉ 2 will be featuring live coverage of the race with commentary by Declan Quigley and PJ Nolan focusing on the Irish interest. Martyn Irvine will be sitting on the panel as a studio analyst, ensuring good coverage of the Olympic cycling road race, which kicks off at 13.30 Irish time.