Julian Winn became the first foreign winner of the FBD Milk Ras in 11 years and the first from Wales in the race's 48-year history. as of the new millennium. Next year there is talk of the Irish tour being upgraded to a world-ranked international race.
For the Irish, mixed fortunes. Two days in yellow, four stage wins, four riders in the top 10. The two Davids, O'Loughlin and McCann, impressed in particular, but missing vital moves along the way meant they finished fifth and sixth respectively. The Ben McKenna award for best under-23 rider will go some way towards tempering O'Loughlin's disappointment, while McCann's monopolisation of the sprints and mountains jerseys is considerable consolation. Patrick Moriarty rode consistently well to secure fourth overall.
The race ended with an hour-long speedfest on O'Connell Street yesterday, but in truth the scores were settled on cruel Wicklow slopes on Saturday afternoon.
Winn was top of the pile going into the stage. With 97 testing miles to detect chinks in his yellow armour, Gethin Butler and David Peelo made a brave bolt for home early in the stage, crossing the Aughavanagh and Drumgoff climbs in front.
Clear over the top of the Wicklow gap, they were closed down by the chasers. McCann later escaped, finishing second on the stage behind his team-mate Stephen O'Sullivan and ahead of Butler, but the one minute 25 seconds he gained still left him over three minutes in arrears.
The race was effectively over. Little changes on the final day of the Ras; despite lone forays by McCann and O'Loughlin, Winn held on to take the top honour. Tommy Evans and Eugene Moriarty finished first and second in the frantic dash for the line, salvaging something for an Irish team which never really gelled.
Best of the International teams was the England Pro Vision outfit while the Kildare Cahill Cycles quintet rode above themselves to usurp Derry Clarke Contracts for the county award. On the podium afterwards, Winn was clearly relieved to have won despite an inopportune puncture on Saturday.
"It was a tough week. It is a brilliant race and a great race to win. The boys and me worked hard all through the week and it is great to come out on top. Being the first Welshman ever to win is great, because I know the Irish don't like to let it slip, really. But they rode fair, I rode fair and I ended up winning in the end. Just great," he concluded.
