10.00: Good morning and welcome to Live Updates from stage one of the Tour of Ireland, as brought to you by An Post and Irishcycling.com.
10.15: It's an overcast day in Dublin but the forecast seems good for the week; we hope the sun will make a show later today. It makes the race more enjoyable for the riders and the spectators, of course, but is also important for the TV images that are being sent to stations all around the world.
10.26: All 110 riders have lined out in Dublin's Grand Canal Dock, and are currently on a 12km neutralised journey to the race start proper at the national mint, between Dundrum and Sandyford. This will be at 10.44, approximately.
10.30: The initial kilometres of this stage will be well known to cyclists in the area; the road to Enniskerry is well travelled as it is one of the main routes to Wicklow. From there the riders head up the short but steep Djouce climb, then on to Roundwood and the first An Post sprint.
10.35: There are some very good teams and riders here, not least the Team Columbia squad of Mark Cavendish. The 23 year old won four stages in this year's Tour de France, and will look to add to his 13 season wins this week.
Triple Italian time trial champion and winner of the final stage of the Tour of Italy, Marco Pinotti, is also riding with the team. He spoke at the pre-race press conference yesterday; we hope to have more on that later today.
10.39: The Garmin Chipotle team is also impressive, with riders such as Tour de France/ Tour of Spain stage winner David Millar, Paris-Roubaix victor Magnus Backstedt and Irish champion Daniel Martin all riding. The latter is having an excellent debut pro season, winning the Route du Sud, the Irish title and then recently finishing tenth in the Tour of Portugal. He was second in the best young rider competition there, losing out by just ten seconds after leading it for most of the race.
10.41: Other Irish riders will of course also aim to do well. The An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly team has a strong selection, including FBD Insurance Ras winner Stephen Gallagher, national road race championship runner-up Paidi O'Brien, Tour du Pyrenees winner Dan Fleeman, Daniel Lloyd, Mark Cassidy, Kenny Lisabett and Kurt de Schrooder.
You can see a clip of the riders at the bottom of this page.
This is one of the most important races of the year for the team, and the seven riders will be determined to ride strongly.
10.47: The Irish national team are David McCann, Paul Griffin, Paul Healion, Roger Aiken, Sean Lacey, Miceal Concannon and Stephen O’Sullivan, while Pezula Racing has Olympian David O’Loughlin, Ciarán Power, Kieran Page, Cameron Jennings, Alex Wetterhall, Fredrik Ericsson and Martyn Irvine.
10.50: The race has officially started; no breaks as yet.
11.00: The riders are heading out the Enniskerry road. Things are quite settled, as is often the case with pro racing.
11.06: The peloton is heading towards the first climb of the day, that of Djouce.
11.10: Bear with us; the car had to go ahead of the race and stopped in a network blackspot, so we were out of coverage. We understand that the race is still together heading towards the hill.
Correction - despite checking several times with the race organisation, it appears that the route heads up the Long Hill/Calary climb rather than Djouce. We apologise if any spectators have been waiting there.
That's pretty frustrating to find out the details given to us were misleading.
11.19: Network coverage has been unexpectedly patchy; bear with us. We'll keep writing here, and upload when we get back online.
The riders are on the climb now.
11.22: Things are calm in the bunch for now...it's all together, despite the climb.
11.26: The peloton was all together going over the top of the climb. We'll get notification of the prime winner soon.
The speed has gone up now, heading towards Roundwood.
There were some attacks over the top, with four riders briefly going clear. It's all back together now, but the pace is high.
11.32: Daniel Martin is suffering from a stomach bug and has been to speak with the race doctor. We hope he continues; his first cousin Nicolas Roche was forced to pull out on the first stage last year due to a saddle sore. We’ll keep you posted.
11.35: The riders have covered 25 kilometres. Adam Semple (SouthAustralia.com) has attacked.
The first An Post sprint comes in Roundwood, 28.5 kilometres after the start.
Semple is joined by Martyn Irvine (Pezula Racing). They are still two clicks from the sprint.
The sun is starting to shine, poking through the clouds here. It remains quite overcast, so no tan lotion needed as yet :)
11.38: The peloton caught the riders just before the sprint. We’ll give you those results when they come through.
We’ve got the official results for the first climb:
Lower Sugar Loaf, category 3 (km 17.9):
1, Johan Coenen (Topsport Vlaanderen)
2, Mark Cassidy (An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly)
3, Bernhard Eisel (Team Columbia)
4, Sven Renders (Topsport Vlaanderen)
11.48: Five riders went clear en route to Laragh: Michael Barry (Team Columbia), Serguei Klimov (Tinkoff Credit Systems), Nikolas Maes (Topsport Vlaanderen), Thomas Rabou (Rabobank) and Svein Erik Vold (Joker Bianchi Team).
11.53: They were caught soon afterwards, then Travis Meyer (SouthAustralia.com), David George (MTN South Africa) and Martyn Irvine (Pezula) pushed on ahead. They currently have 15 seconds lead.
Matt Wilson (Team Type 1) has bridged across.
11.54: The leaders have 32 seconds. We are passing through the Vale of Clara, a very picturesque location. It’s stunning, but unfortunately there’s no network coverage right now.
The peloton is together, with four leaders. We expect the timegaps to jump up now, as several riders in the peloton took the opportunity to water the roadside foliage. That’s done when there is a lull.
11.57: The four leaders are working well together.
By the way, good showing by Mark Cassidy (An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly) on the first climb. He was second, and looks to be back to strong form after his crash in the FBD Insurance Rás.
Sure enough, the time gap is now up to one minute 50 seconds.
12.01: Bad luck; Wilson has punctured from the break. We hope he can rejoin.
Still no official results from the first sprint. The riders are heading towards the second An Post sprint in Rathdrum.
Wilson is chasing now, having changed his wheel.
12.05: They are into Rathdrum now. The leaders have a gap of four minutes 21 seconds. Wilson is nearly back up to them.
12.06: He makes it across, so there are four leaders again.
Ok, the first prime was as follows:
An Post Hot spot sprint, Roundwood (km 28.5)
1, Alexander Kristoff (Joker Bianchi Team)
2, Joachim Bohler (Joker Bianchi Team)
3, Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia)
We are not sure of the fourth rider, but will list that in the stage results.
12.15: The four leaders are over six minutes clear. This looks like being the break of the day. Can they stay clear? We’ll find out as the stage progresses…
Of the leaders, Wilson and George are best known. The former survived Hodgkins disease and has won the Australian national championships and the 2007 Herald Sun Tour, taking two stages in the latter. George has won multiple South African titles and the Tour de Langkawi.
12.21: The results of the second hot spot:
An Post Hot spot sprint, Rathdrum (km 48.7):
1, Martyn Irvine (Pezula Racing)
2, David George (MTN Energade)
3, Travis Meyer (SouthAustralia.com/AIS)
4, Matt Wilson (Team Type 1)
12.24: The break is rolling along nicely, increasing its lead. The last time check gave them 7 minutes 20 seconds.
12.30: The leaders have covered 65 kilometres. The feed zone starts 97.7 kilometres into the stage, while the first category climb of Mount Leinster peaks 119.3 km after the start.
12.35: The leaders have 7 minutes 43 seconds. They have covered 70 kilometres.
12.44: It’s still pretty overcast. Irvine seems to be working less than the other riders. George pulls off and then he goes through to take his turn.
Behind, a number of riders are leading the peloton, including Mark Cavendish’s Columbia squad. The time gap has started to fall, dropping to 6 minutes 50 seconds. The leaders have covered 77.2 kilometres.
12.49: 78 kilometres have been covered in the first two hours of racing.
13.00: We have got an update as to Daniel Martin. According to the race doctor, he picked up a stomach bug in the Tour of Portugal and has been unwell in the run up to this race. He’s still in the peloton, and is expected to get his health back in the days ahead.
The gap is down to six minutes 12 seconds. Team Columbia, Garmin Chipotle and Joker Bianchi are leading the peloton.
13.06: For those who are curious, the An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly team and the other riders are all, we presume, in the main bunch.
13.09: This stage has been very controlled thus far. We are passing through Shillelagh, which is 90 kilometres after the start and 100 from the finish.
The four riders are working well together, each rotating through.
13.19: As they head through the feed zone (km 97.7), the gap here is five minutes 30 seconds. The peloton are keeping tabs on the break, ready to reel it in closer to the finish. Of course, the quartet won’t go quietly; they will try to ramp up their own pace when the chase starts.
13.22: Wilson takes food from his bag, then chucks it away. George didn’t take a feedbag, but he got some bottles from the team car a while back.
13.30: The gap continues to fall – it’s down to five minutes, five seconds. The four leaders have covered 105 kilometres; the category one climb of Mount Leinster starts in five kilometres.
13.34: The leaders are now in Bunclody. It’s 18 degrees and cloudy, but the sun is poking through.
All four riders up front are working. George peels off the front, then Wilson does his turn. They are on an uncategorised climb before Mount Leinster,
13.42: The riders have gone up another shortish, steep climb. George and Wilson appear to be the strongest on the hills, while Irvine is under a little pressure. They cross the top together and race on towards the main climb.
13.45: Martin’s team-mate Chris Sutton also picked up a stomach bug at the Tour of Portugal, and is receiving treatment from the race doctor.
13.48: At kilometre 114, Irvine has been shelled on another foothill. The other three press on, with George and then Wilson riding through. They are doing a bit more work than Meyer.
13.54: The riders have started Mount Leinster, but there has been a lot of climbing before this point. They go over a cattle grid without problems.
Back in the bunch, several riders have been dropped on those foothills.
The gap is now 3’50”. Irvine is approximately 20” back and losing ground.
13.57: George leads the break, then Wilson rolls through.
14.02: The leaders crossed the top. They sprinted for it, with Wilson coming off George’s wheel to take it. Meyer was third, but also has been climbing well.
Although the climb is ranked a category one, it doesn’t compare to the equivalent in the major European races. It’s hard, but not excessively so.
14.05: The three leaders have covered 125 kilometres. They have 67 remaining. The next time gap will be interesting.
14.10: The leaders tore down the descent, moving well together. The gap went up to four minutes 43 seconds.
14.21: Wilson took the An Post sprint in Borris, 134.8 kilometres after the start. He and Meyer went for it on the uphill drag to the line, while George cracked and is dropped.
Irvine is still ahead of the peloton, but will be caught.
14.25: The two Australians push on, with George fading rapidly.
14.30: Irvine was caught a couple of kilometres ago. We are 51 kilometres from the finish now, so the next half hour will reveal whether or not the two leaders have a chance.
Going back to the last sprint, the results were:
An Post hot spot sprint in Borris, km 134.8:
1, Matt Wilson (Team Type 1)
2, Travis Meyer (SouthAustralia.com)
3, David George (MTN Energade)
4, Morris Possoni (Team Columbia)
14.37: The leaders are on the third category climb of Saddle Hill. The gap is three minutes 35 seconds with 47 kilometres left. It’s not looking good for the two Aussies
We have got official confirmation of the results on the big climb.
Category one climb of Mount Leinster, km 119.3:
1, Matt Wilson (Team Type 1)
2, David George (MTN Energade)
3, Travis Meyer (SouthAustralia.com)
4, Martyn Irvine (Pezula Racing)
5, Bernhard Eisel (Team Columbia)
6, Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia)
7, Morris Possoni (Team Columbia)
8, Frantisek Rabon (Team Columbia)
We suggest a couple of things regarding this result. One, the peloton was controlled by Columbia. Two, the presence of Eisel and Cavendish in the points shows that the climb wasn’t ridden flat out by the flyweights. And three, we feel that Cavendish is well up for the stage win.
Wilson led Meyer over the Saddle Hill climb.
14.47: Glen Chadwick (Team Type 1) has packed the race due to gastroenteritis. That’s unfortunate.
14.50: After four hours of racing, the leaders had covered 153 kilometres.
They are really committed, driving the pace now as they head through Inistioge. They turn left and are immediately on the second category climb there. Meyer is doing most of the work on these slopes, digging in, while Wilson looks more composed.
The gap is 3 minutes 55 seconds now, so the leaders are riding very well. Wilson now sets the pace. Meyer is suffering a lot, but he goes through.
14.57: They are almost at the top of the climb. Wilson takes the prime ahead of Meyer. They have 36 kilometres remaining on this stage, and have a fighting chance of staying clear. Much will depend on how the bunch rides now.
15.01: The peloton was 3’45 back at the top. Providing it is committed, it should get these two back. There’s still a way to go, though
We have got the results of the third category climb which came a while back:
Category three climb of Saddle Hill, km 146.8:
1, Matt Wilson (Team Type 1)
2, Travis Meyer (SouthAustralia.com/AIS)
3, Filippo Savini (CSF Group Navigare)
4, Stian Sommerseth (Joker Bianchi Team)
15.05: The two leaders know they have a chance, if they really push it. These roads are harder than the profile suggests, with many short, sharp climbs interspersed with fast, twisting descents. They are also small and sheltered by trees.
15.10: Apologies for the delay in updates; they are being written continuously, but the network coverage is somewhat patchy.
Several riders have been dropped from the peloton on the descent.
15.11: Today’s stage finishes in Waterford, home to Ciarán Power (Pezula Racing). He’s a fast galloper so look for him to feature in the top ten.
15.13: The gap is two minutes 30 seconds with 25 kilometres to go… The peloton has started riding much quicker, so it should come down more rapidly now. Can they stay away? We think it’s unlikely, but we’ll see…
15.17: Meyer has been in difficulty, and was briefly dropped. He got back to Wilson but it's clear who is stronger of the two.
15.20: The gap is only 1’33 now…
Bradley Potgieter (MTN Energade) unfortunately crashed earlier in the stage. He’s out of the race with a fractured clavicle, but is otherwise okay.
15.22: We are not sure of the reason, but Mark Cavendish was off the back of the peloton. He’s back up to the main bunch now, though, and will be thinking of a sprint finish and the chance to take win number 14 of his second pro season.
With 20 kilometres remaining, the gap is 1 minute 8 seconds.
15.34: There's 12 kilometres left to go, and the break is looking certain to be caught. They have just 36 seconds now...ouch.
Magnus Backstedt (Garmin Chipotle) has punctured. We hope he gets back on – it’s hard when you get a flat so close to the finish.
15.38: With ten kilometres to go, the gap is 28 seconds. The leaders are still giving it loads, though, stubbornly trying to stay clear.
15.42: The leaders are about to be caught by the Columbia peloton. We are going on to the finish, where it looks almost certain a bunch sprint will take place.
15.44: There is a long, wide finishing straight approximately one kilometre in length. That means a big, big windup…
15.46: It’s going to be a massive gallop, methinks…
15.48: They are all together with one kilometre to go…Can Cavendish do it?
The answer is...yes! He hits the front early and goes for it, finishing a bike length ahead of Julian Dean (Garmin Chipotle).
It looks like Alexander Kristoff (Joker Bianchi) was third..we think Ciaran Power was in the top ten, but that needs to be confirmed.. We should have some results in a few minutes....
Thanks for bearing with us while results were being issued. The provisional top ten is:
1, Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia) 192 kilometres in 5 hours 20 secs
2, Julian Dean (Garmin Chipotle)
3, Alexander Kristoff (Joker Bianchi)
4, Boy Van Poppel (Rabobank)
5, Dean Downing (Rapha Condor Recycling.co.uk)
6, Kurt de Schrooder (An Post M. Donnelly Grant Thornton Sean Kelly)
7, Russell Downing (Pinarello CandiTV)
8, Nikolas Maes (Topsport Vlaanderen)
9, Kurt Hovelijnck (Topsport Vlaanderen)
10, Zakkari Dempster (SouthAustralia.com AIS) all same time
That’s Cavendish’s 14th win of the season, adding to the four Tour de France stage victories and his two wins in the Giro d’Italia.
Boy Van Poppel is actually the son of Jean Paul Van Poppel, former winner of the Tour green jersey.
Fine performance by the An Post team – Kurt de Schrooder took sixth. That’s the first in what the team hopes will be several top ten results this week. Of course, a stage win is the ultimate goal.
The top five is:
1, Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia) 5 hours 9 seconds
2, Alexander Kristoff (Joker Bianchi) at 4 secs
3, Julian Dean (Garmin Chipotle) at 5 secs
4, Matt Wilson (Team Type 1) at 8 secs
5, Boy Van Poppel (Rabobank) at 11 secs
Hard luck to Matt Wilson and the other riders in the break. They gave their all but it was not to be. Wilson has the considerable consolation of the mountains jersey, ahead of Meyer.
So it looks like Power was not in the top ten; we’ll have his results and those of the other Irish riders in the race a little later on. Please come back then for full results and a report.
Thanks for reading! We will have more coverage tomorrow, and hopefully the network coverage will be better. It should be a great stage so surf on over then…
