Irish riders jump to first and second overall in Junior Tour of Ireland

Stage four of the Junior Tour of Ireland was a hugely encouraging one for the Ireland team, with Nathan Keown seizing the yellow jersey of race leader after a 109.9 kilometre race based in and around Ballyvaughan and scaling three category one climbs. Keown was part of a 13 rider break which gained considerable time on the rest of the field.

He and teammate Kevin McCambridge drove the move along, expending energy for the general classification rather than chasing the stage win. They rolled in 11th and 12th on the stage but jumped to first and second in the overall standings.

First to the line was British rider Joe Wilson (Green Jersey), who outsprinted Nicolas Rivard (Hot Tubes 1), Alastair Pounder (Arapahoe/Hincapie) and Ireland’s Finley Newmark. All the riders from 14th back lost at least three and a half minutes, including the overnight leader Mangus Sheffield (Hot Tubes 1).

Keown heads into Saturday’s penultimate stage with a 28 second advantage over McCambridge, putting the Ireland time in with a strong chance of winning the race overall. Wilson is third, 39 seconds back, with Rivard a further four seconds back.

Is this the cleanest Tour de France . . . ever? Fingers crossed

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Eurocycles/Eurobaby Junior Tour of Ireland Stage 4, Ballyvaughan to Ballyvaughan:

1, Joe Wilson (Green Jersey) 109.9 kilometres in 2 hours 38 mins 12 secs; 2, N. Rivard (Hot Tubes 1); 3, A. Pounder (Arapahoe/Hincapie); 4, F. Newmark (Ireland); 5, J. Wordsworth (Fensham Howes Mas Design); 6, K. Chromy (Lux Sideshow); 7, C. Page (Green Jersey); 8, T. Stedman (Greenmount CA) all same time

King of the Mountains primes:

Category 1 climb at km 18.2: 1, Blake Wray (Velosport) 12 pts; 2, N. Keown (Ireland) 10; 3, Q. Simmons (Lux Sideshow) 8

Category 3 climb at km 20.9: 1, Samuel Asker (BC Eastern) 5 pts; 2, J. Wordsworth (Fensham Howes Mas Design) 3; 3, T. Stedman (Greenmount CA) 1

Category 1 climb of Corkscrew Hill: 1, Colby Simmons (Lux Sideshow) 12 pts; 2, S. Asker (BC Eastern) 10; 3, B. Wray (Velosport) 8

Category 3 climb at km 56.1: 1, Travis Stedman (Greenmount CA) 5 pts; 2, J. Wordsworth (Fensham Howes Mas Design) 3; 3, F. Newmark (Ireland) 1

Category 1 climb of Castle Hill: 1, Travis Stedman (Greenmount CA) 12 pts; 2, J. Wordsworth (Fensham Howes Mas Design) 10; 3, K. McCambridge (Ireland) 8

Team: 1, Ireland, 7 hours 54 mins 36 secs; 2, Lux Sideshow, 7 hours 58 mins 9 secs; 3, Green Jersey, 7 hours 58 mins 16 secs

General classification

1, Nathan Keown (Ireland) 8 hours 6 mins 26 secs; 2, K. McCambridge (Ireland) at 38 secs; 3, J. Wilson (Green Jersey) at 39 secs; 4, N. Rivard (Hot Tubes 1) at 43 secs; 5, A. Pounder (Arapahoe/Hincapie) at 45 secs; 6, F. Newmark (Ireland) at 49 secs; 7, T. Stedman (Greenmount CA); 8, C. Simmons (Lux Sideshow) both same time

Points: 1, Nick Carter (Hot Tubes 1) 33 points; 2, F. Newmark (Ireland) 32; 3, Q. Simmons (Lux Sideshow) 31

Mountains: 1, Colby Simmons (Lux Sideshow) 33 points; 2, M. Sheffield (Hot Tubes 1) 31; 3, B. Wray (Velosport) 20

First year junior: 1, Travis Stedman (Greenmount CA) 8 hours 7 mins 15 secs; 2, C. Simmons (Lux Sideshow); 3, K. Chromy (Lux Sideshow) both same time

Team: 1, Ireland, 24 hours 20 mins 45 secs; 2, Lux Sideshow, at 2 secs; 3, Green Jersey, at 2 mins 25 secs