Team Sky’s Russ Downing will miss out on the chance to defend his Tour of Ireland title this year after organisers pulled the plug on the race as a result of a funding shortfall.
The Irish Independent reports that while the Irish tourist board, Failte Ireland, had pledged to continue supporting the race, organisers had decided to cancel the event due to being unable to raise the full €1.5 million required to stage it.
Last year was the third edition of the race after it was revived in 2007 following a 17-year absence from the calendar and it attracted a host of star names including Lance Armstrong, although the overall victory went to Downing, then riding with Candi TV-Marshalls Pasta.
The economic recession meant that last year’s race had to be shortened to three days instead of the scheduled five, and although race director Alan Rushton though about doing likewise this year, in the end it was decided to cancel the race.
Rushton told the Irish Independent: “You can't economise on safety. You also need television coverage. In the current economic climate it has proven impossible to gather sufficient sponsorship to cover the cost of the race and organise it in the manner that is required of a world-class event.”
He continued:"We need to start working now for 2011. We fully intend to bring the race back when the private sector environment is stronger."
Irish National Road Race Champion and AG2R La Mondiale rider Nicolas Roche regretted the decision not to hold the race this year, but was hopeful that it would return in the future. "It's a real pity, as it had just made its comeback after all those years," he told the newspaper. "It just shows how difficult it is to organise a race of that nature nowadays. Hopefully, it's only a temporary setback."
It's probably in Romania by now, or Poland, but a picture would certainly help, size too?
Sounds like spam... which bike was used for the kit, please at least post pictures with the end result.
He needs a good lawyer......
Sorry, I just could not finish the article. As soon as I saw figures quoted in excess of 100% I had to look away. There is nothing greater than 100...
I live in Gloucestershire where being inconvenienced is dealt with more harshly than being close passed, no matter how close or how fast...
I have read people commenting before about not having a camera on your helmet as it will give you injuries....
It's standard to have a suspended sentence due to full prisons....
Perhaps you're running them at lower pressures / with extra weight? I've found they feel sketchy at least when cornering and I've had a few offs...
True ... but left to itself that notion tends to go the same way as instructing pedestrians, cyclists and SUV drivers to "share the road"!...
To be fair to them, it looks like a choice between that or a lot of sunken surfaces and ironworks further out.