IRISH QUARTET IN ACTION IN BELGIAN DOUBLE HEADER
IN FORM CASSIDY SET FOR START IN 3 DAY STAGE RACE
All of the Irish contingent within the An Post Sean Kelly team will be in action over the next few days as the team takes part in two domestic races in Belgium.
Meathman Mark Cassidy, who has started the season in flying form, is part of an eight man team that will take part in the Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen (2.1). The three day stage race starts tomorrow (Friday 4th March) with a 7 kilometre time trial.
His Irish compatriots Sam Bennett, Philip Lavery and Ronan McLaughlin will all be on the starting line for Saturday’s (5th March) one day race, the De Vlaamse Pijl (1.2).
Team manager Kurt Bogaerts was delighted with last weeks results, which included new signing Dries Hollanders podium finish at the Beverbeek Classic. He also singled out Cassidy for praise following a good performance at the Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
“We continued our good start to the year with two strong races last weekend. Dries (Hollanders) was unlucky not to win the Beverbeek - in the end it came down to a two man sprint and the other guy was just a little bit faster.”
“I have been really impressed with (Mark) Cassidy’s start to the season; he has been very consistent, which is usually his biggest problem! Last Saturday he was involved in all the big breakaways and I really think it was one of his best races for us. He has another opportunity in tomorrow’s race, so I really hope his fine form continues” Bogaerts added.
2011 AN POST SEAN KELLY CYCLING TEAM
OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED IN BELGIUM
Following a great start to the season where the team was involved in the much of the major action during the prestigious Tours of Qatar and Oman, the 2011 An Post sponsored Sean Kelly Cycling team was officially launched in Brussels today.
This year’s squad is made up of sixteen riders and includes four Irish cyclists, with 2010 riders Mark Cassidy and Ronan McLaughlin both re-signed alongside young Irish hopefuls Sam Bennett and Philip Lavery.
“The team has started really well this year and it was fantastic that we got invites to both tours (Tour of Qatar and Tour of Oman). We put in great performances in both races and from a personal point of view it was incredible to be racing against some of the best cyclists in the world. The overall experience was amazing and something that I definitely want more of,” Bennett said.
Bennett’s statement is backed up by the team’s proven ability in competing against their ProTour rivals for the second time in as many weeks in Oman. The ‘boys in green’ were involved in many of the stage’s big breakaways and bunch sprints, the outcome of which saw some fine results, including Niko Eeckhout’s 8th place in the third stage, followed by Pieter Ghyllebert’s excellent 7th place in the sixth and final stage, in a dash to the line which was won by ‘king sprinter’ Mark Cavendish.
The team will once again have a strong Belgian contingent as Eeckhout along with Ghyllebert, Bjorn Brems and Maxim Debusschere are all re-signed from last year’s side. They are joined by new signees and fellow countrymen Kevin Claeys, Kess Heytens, Dries Hollanders and Kenny Terweduwe.
The final existing team member retained from last year, Mark McNally, will have other UK company in the setup as Great Britain Under 23 academy rider and former Paris-Roubaix Junior winner, Andy Fenn, joins the group. This season’s line up is completed by promising Lithuanian duo, Darijus Dzervus and Gediminas Bagdonas.
Team manager Kurt Bogaerts said the team is now full of confidence and he hopes this will keep the early season momentum going. “We were grateful to receive the invites to the races to Qatar and Oman, but I wanted to make sure that they weren’t just that (invites). The strategy we set up was to ride aggressively and to be involved in all the breakaways, to prove that we were really worth the invitations.”
“The results were better than I expected and we got a lot of compliments, especially from the race organisers. I was very happy with the young guys, particularly Sam Bennett, who found it tough in Qatar, but was excellent in Oman.”
