CYCLING NEWS:PROMISING SECOND-year Irish pro Daniel Martin intended spending today making final preparations for tomorrow's start of the Tour de France, but instead he's heading home from the race. The 22-year-old climber was forced to withdraw from his debut Tour due to knee tendonitis, and will now redirect his focus on the Vuelta a España (Tour of Spain) later this year.
Martin had been experiencing knee pain for some time and it flared up again as the Tour approached. He and his Garmin Slipstream team kept news of the injury quiet, being initially confident that they could treat it in time. However, they ultimately decided that the risk is too much to take, and he will be replaced by Dutch team-mate Martijn Maaskant for the race.
“Of course I would have loved to start the Tour, but I want what is best for the team,” he said. “The medical staff and directors have been incredibly supportive, but at this point we’ve exhausted all of our resources. I wish the outcome would have been different. Martijn is in great form and will be a strong replacement.”
His uncle, Stephen Roche, the 1987 Tour de France winner, explained that it was the best course of action. “He was doing a lot of training in the mountains around Andorra and in the last couple of days this knee injury started flaring up,” Roche said. “The team prefer to put someone else in . . . there was a chance he could ride it and do permanent damage; there was also a chance he could start it and be forced to pull out after two days.”
Martin is just in his second year as a pro but he’s made a strong impression thus far. Last June he won the Route du Sud and dominated the Irish road race championships, while this year he finished second on a mountain stage of the Vuelta a Catalunya plus second overall.
Martin had been hoping for a stage win in the Tour. While he will be disappointed to withdraw at this late point, Roche thinks it will be better for him in the long run.
“I have been at him all along not to ride the Tour de France, to ride the Tour in Spain instead,” he said. “Dan is still very young for the Tour . . . for me it was always preferable that he rode the Vuelta. It’s later in the season and it doesn’t matter as much how he does. There’s also less pressure.”
Ireland will still have a presence in the race; national champion Nicolas Roche will line out as part of the Ag2r La Mondiale team. The 24-year-old is Martin’s first cousin and is another talented rider. He was 13th in last year’s Tour of Spain and is hoping for a stage win in what is his first Tour.
Meanwhile, Irish rider Mary Costello was 41st in yesterday’s junior time trial at the European championships in Belgium. She covered the 12-kilometre test in a time of two minutes and 12 seconds slower than the French winner Pauline Ferrand-Prevot.
Seán Downey decided not to ride the under-23 time trial in order to focus his energies on Sunday’s road race. He will join FBD Insurance Rás stage winner Sam Bennett, Philip Lavery, Conor McConvey and Ronan McLaughlin, while Costello will ride the junior women’s road race.
Saturday:Brendan Carroll memorial, Stamullen. Main event at 11.45.
Sunday:Tom Sheehan Memorial, Carrick on Suir, 1.0pm, junior race 12.0; Kevin McInerney Memorial, Dunlavin, 1.0pm; Bobby Crilly Classic race, Hannahstown, Ulster, 11.0am; Tommy Givan TT, Woodgreen, Ulster, 9.0am; IVCA 80k Batterstown.
