Cycling Reports |
SCANLON ABOUT TO MAKE HIS MARKBy Gerard Cromwell (Jan 20)
Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche are to blame for the high expectations that have already been laid at the Sligo man's doorstep. Between them they won almost every major professional bike race in the world, including both the Tour De France and World Championships. At a time when Ireland only had two riders in the European professional peleton, these two were ranked one and two in the world. Since their retirements in the late 80s cycling in Ireland has seen numbers drop dramatically and nobody has shown any real signs of breaking into the big time. Until now that is. In 1999 Mark Scanlon was in his second year as a junior (U/18). The Sligo youngster with the tree trunk thighs and cherubic smile simply outclassed the opposition at home. He was unbeaten in junior races for the whole season, including the Junior Tour of Ireland and the National Road Race Championships. Such was the ease of his victories, he decided to ride against senior opposition to prepare him for an assault on the World Championships later that year. He entered the 2nd category Gorey 3-Day and the 1st category Galway 2-day. He won them both. David Hourigan, a senior Irish international at the time recalls the latter, "I was away with this guy in the criterium stage and he was really driving hard. I was hurting. I thought - he's gonna have nothing left for the finish. Then he outsprinted me! I couldn't understand it. When somebody told me after that he was only a junior, I couldn't get over it. He was so strong. No matter what I did the next day I couldn't get the yellow jersey off him. He was unbelievable for such a young kid!" As the World Championships approached, the youngster decided to try his luck on the continent. A trip to Belgium with a Sligo CC teammate saw Scanlon enter the junior Het Volk, a replica of the professional classic but for under 18's. With no team car, no team and no back-up, Scanlon found himself in a breakaway group of five riders. With three kilometres to go, there were the champion of Holland, the champion of Belgium and Scanlon left. The Irish champion outsprinted the Dutchman and the Belgian to record his finest victory thus far. Continental cycling managers began to sit up and take notice. The Junior World Championships in Belgium saw Mark Scanlon underline his determination, strength and sheer class when he took Ireland's first gold medal since Stephen Roche in 1987. European team managers, professional and amateur, were clamouring for the Sligoman's signature and Irish cycling fans were getting excited again. Four years later, after injury, illness and a postponed professional debut with the ill-fated Linda McCartney team, the youngest ever freeman of Sligo is about to get his long-awaited chance in the big time. An end of season trial with the French division one outfit Ag2r last season saw Scanlon record some excellent results, including two 3rd places against the top pro's. In one of these races French hero and Tour De France King of the Mountains winner for the past two years, Laurent Jalabert and Italian classics specialist Gianluca Bortolami spent 150kms in a breakaway with the youngster. Such was the Irishman's strength and exuberance that Jalabert had to tell him to take it easy in the break. David Hourigan knows the feeling. Ag2r decided to sign the youngster just before the U/23 World Championships in Belgium in October. They feared he might win and his signature would come at a higher price. With 5 kilometres to go in that race it looked to be a wise move but negative riding by his breakaway partners and Scanlon's reputation combined to rob him of a medal. Having recently completed a nine-day training camp with Ag2r in the South of France, where 1100 kilometres were covered in eight days, Scanlon suitably impressed team manager Vincent Lavenu to be included in the teams' first outing of the 2003 season, the Australian Tour Down Under. Some early season stage races such as Paris-Nice are also on the cards and with Ag2r already guaranteed a spot in this year's Tour De France the current Irish champion could be on the start line for the first time ever. "Mark Scanlon will be a very good rider", predicts teammate and former Tour stage winner Christophe Agnollutto, "He is very complete. He climbs, rides hard and sprints well." Already, old French phrase books are being dusted off all around the country. Suntan lotions are being stockpiled. Irish cycling fans are dreaming of running up mountains in the searing sun of a French July, wrapped in the tricolour, cheering on a new hero. For Irish cycling, the future's bright once again. The future's Scanlon. Email: gerard@irishcycling.com |
When
Mark Scanlon touches down in Adelaide, Australia, this week he will be carrying
with him not just the colours of his new French professional team, Ag2r, but
also the hopes and dreams of success-starved cycling fans all over Ireland.