Mihaylov takes stage as Bagdonas grabs yellow jersey

CYCLING:IT'S LESS than halfway through a race that is notoriously difficult to defend, but the An Post Grant Thornton M Donnelly Seán Kelly team has seized the chance to take the yellow jersey in the An Post Rás.

Gediminas Bagdonas was on top of the podium for the second time in two days yesterday, following Monday’s stage win with the overall classification lead, and now holds a one minute 16 second lead over the Ukrainian Oleksandr Sheydyk (ISD-Lampre) and the Bulgarian Nikolay Mihaylov (France AVC Aix en Provence).

All three were part of a 17-man break which was sparked off by an initial dozen-rider attack close to Bunratty Castle, 63 kilometres into the stage. Five others joined up and this group knuckled down to open a maximum lead of eight minutes over the main bunch.While that advantage fell closer to the finish, there was enough time to ensure the stage victory and yellow jersey would go to the riders present.

Mihaylov was first to the line, forging clear with Sheydyk on the category one climb of Crag Cave close to the finish, and then outsprinting him to the line in Castleisland. Pete Williams led in a group of nine chasers, with Bagdonas and former race winner Simon Richardson (Britain Sigma Sport) present. Irish riders Patrick Clarke (Mayo Western Edge), Derek Finnegan (Meath Stamullen M Donnelly) and Simon Kelly (Meath 53 Degrees North) had also been in the break and came home two minutes and six seconds back.

Overnight race leader Shane Archbold (New Zealand) rolled in as part of the peloton, two minutes 32 seconds behind, and dropped to eighth overall.

“It is my third win this year,” said Mihaylov after the presentation. “The sprint wasn’t easy as we did many kilometres today and my legs were tired in the final kilometres . . . I am a climber and I was waiting all day for the final climb. I did my attack there.”

Bagdonas was delighted to take yellow, but didn’t appear too happy with the tactics of those who took first and second on the stage. “The guy who won didn’t do so much work today, and so too the Ukrainian rider. They sprinted for the stage win, but I am leader and am also happy. This is my first time to lead a race this big.”

Team manager Kurt Bogaerts concedes the point that normally it is good to hide a little in the early days of the Rás, but said the chance was too good to pass up. “It is a little bit early in the week, maybe, but sometimes you need to take the opportunities when they come,” he said. “Today was one of these opportunities. We will keep seeing things day by day. If I had an eight-man team here, we would really take it under control from now, but now we need to see . . . talk to the guys, see how they feel.”

He said Bagdonas’ strength was reassuring, but so too the fact the team also has Irishmen Ronan McLaughlin and Mark Cassidy within four minutes of the lead and still in with a shout if things reshuffle again.

David McCann is best of the home riders going into today’s mountainous stage to Castletownbere, which scales the Healy Pass close to the finish. He is 12th, three minutes 41 seconds back.