Healion rises to the top to grab stage

CYCLING RÁS: ON PAPER at least, quadruple Tour de France stage victor Jaan Kirsipuu, double 2009 Rás stage winner Nicholas Walker and former Belgian champion Niko Eeckhout were likely to be faster, but Ireland's Paul Healion impressed greatly with a victorious sprint on yesterday's sixth stage.

Hurtling into the final corner in first position and then preserving his advantage all the way along the slightly-uphill finishing straight, the Ireland National Team competitor hit the line in Castlebar comfortably clear of that trio and the rest of the main bunch.

It was his first stage victory in the FBD Rás following years of trying, and he was beaming with the result.

“I’m absolutely delighted – over the moon,” the 30-year-old Dubliner said. “It has been a long time coming. I have ridden this race nine or 10 times, so I’ve waited this long.

“I didn’t believe I had a gap. I looked under my wheel with about 100metres to go and I knew I had it then. I had plenty of time to celebrate.”

Apart from that blazing sprint, the mainly flat, 159-kilometre stage from Scariff was marked by a 70-kilometre breakaway by Laurent Didier (Denmark Designa Kokken), Brian Kenneally (Meath Engraveit.ie/BDBC), Peter Ronsse (Australia Cinelli-Down Under) and Espen Jogert (Norway Giant-Veolia).

They built a lead of over two minutes, but were reeled in with 30 kilometres remaining. The Britain Rapha Condor team of race leader Simon Richardson and several other teams controlled the pace and prevented any more breakaways.

This protected the yellow jersey held by Richardson and moved him within two stages of the final victory.

“We have got the strongest team in the race here and today the guys set an infernal pace,” he said.

“I think everyone in the bunch was cursing (because of the speed). If we have another day like today the chances of retaining the yellow jersey right through to the finish are good.

“They increase day by day, but, that said, you can never count your chickens in this race because it is just too difficult to control. With small teams you have to fight every inch of the way.”

Kenneally was annoyed after the stage, having spent almost 70 kilometres off the front and having nothing to show for it.

“I was flying, but the other guys wouldn’t ride properly,” he said.

One who was happier was David O’Loughlin (Ireland An Post M Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly), who won one of the day’s two mountain primes and has thus all but guaranteed his win in that classification.

The 2.2-ranked race continues today with the penultimate stage, a mainly flat, 150 kilometres from Castlebar to Clara, Co Offaly.