Irish Road Championships: Rory Townsend takes second national title at end of aggressive men's road race
Jamie Meehan second, Patrick Casey third in race full of attacks
2022 champion Rory Townsend (Q36.5) sprinted to a second title in the Irish national championships, winning a men's road race that was full of attacks.
The race was hardly calm for a moment, but the riders aggressive all day long and many riders still in contention deep into the race, but a fast finish from Townsend delivered him to the line in a four-man sprint.
Jamie Meehan (AVC Aix Provence Dole) took second, with Patrick Casey (Israel-Premier Tech Academy) third, but Townsend's sprint was dominant, finishing a whole second in front of Meehan and three ahead of Casey.
Townsend was one of three former national champions on the list, alongside defending champion Darren Rafferty (EF Education-EasyPost) and Ryan Mullen (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe).
Rafferty was in the group that went to the line, but the climber could only sprint for fourth, whilst Mullen finished in 13th, some three minutes down after losing touch with the race further away from the finish.
With most riders starting the race with no teammates, it was a chaotic day in Ireland, with attacks and moves going almost all day long. The likes of Townsend, Mullen, Rafferty (and his brother Adam) and Seth Dunwoody (Bahrain Victorious Development) where in amongst all of them as the group slowly whittled down.
Heading towards the final lap, a big attack from Darren Rafferty drew out a group of four, who then led for the last lap, holding off the chasers.
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
The quartet went on to contest the win in a sprint, with Townsend galloping to victory by a clear margin.
Results
Results powered by FirstCycling
Matilda is an NCTJ-qualified journalist based in the UK who joined Cyclingnews in March 2025. Prior to that, she worked as the Racing News Editor at GCN, and extensively as a freelancer contributing to Cyclingnews, Cycling Weekly, Velo, Rouleur, Escape Collective, Red Bull and more. She has reported from many of the biggest events on the calendar, including the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France Femmes, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. She has particular experience and expertise in women's cycling, and women's sport in general. She is a graduate of modern languages and sports journalism.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Melbourne to Warrnambool and Women's Warrnambool Cycling Classic rescheduled, bushfires cause two-week delay
Dates shifted two weeks later to February 28 and March 1 due to impact of bushfire in the Otway region -
'I saved it for the last lap' - Tibor Del Grosso put pressure on Thibau Nys across final hill to secure silver in first elite appearance at Cyclo-cross World Championships
'I think it proves that I belong in the top of the sport' two-time U23 'cross world champion confirmed -
Arianna Fidanza sprints to victory at Pionera Race-SCV
Laboral Kutxa-Euskadi grabs ninth team victory on early season, with Laura Asencio's second place a milestone for new French team Ma Petite Entreprise -
'I was prepared for any scenario' – Mathieu van der Poel says he took more caution as he chased record-breaking eighth cyclo-cross world title
'Maybe it's not a bad idea to skip one winter' Dutchman adds as he turns focus to upcoming road season



