CYCLING/TOUR OF IRELAND:LOOKING FIT and focused, defending champion Marco Pinotti yesterday said that he expected a big battle with the Astana team of Lance Armstrong in the three-day Tour of Ireland, which starts today. The quadruple Italian time-trial champion said he was motivated to defend his title, and that it was essential to ensure that no surprise attacks would happen prior to the big finale in Cork on Sunday.

"I am in good condition and am ready," he told a large group of reporters at the Ritz-Carlton in Powerscourt, the pre-race headquarters.

"There are some very good teams here including Lance's Astana team, so I think it is going to be a hard race," added Pinotti.

As the Italian testified, the event has grown a lot since last year. His Columbia HTC team-mate Mark Cavendish came here last year as a four-time Tour de France stage winner, and was the new big thing in the sport. Twelve months later, Cavendish has racked up another six sprint victories at the Tour and is one of the very top names in cycling.

Along with seven-time Tour de France winner Armstrong and some very strong Astana riders, there are a number of other big teams like Saxo Bank and the Cervélo Test Team. As a result of all this, huge crowds are expected along the route and at the stage finishes in Waterford, Killarney and Cork.

Many of those will be there to see Armstrong and while the American did not speak at the press conference yesterday - as is his habit in recent months - it is thought that he is in good shape. Since finishing third overall in the Tour de France he has been training hard for the Leadville 100 mountainbike event, a race he won by 28 minutes last weekend.

Back in 1992 he rode the race's predecessor, the Nissan Classic, and may well use the event to put right an unexpected statistic from his first year back in the sport; namely, the fact that he is yet to take an individual win on European soil.

Pinotti and his team will try to control things on today's 196-kilometre stage from Powerscourt, and again on tomorrow's identically-distanced race from Clonmel to Killarney. "It's a bit of a lottery," he said. "We are going to have to be attentive at every moment. We'd like two sprint stages to start off with and will try to keep things under control."

Like the Italian, top Irish hope Philip Deignan said that he expected the overall classification to be settled on the gruelling Cork finishing circuit on Sunday. That takes in three laps of St Patrick's Hill and, with other tough climbs on the circuit, the peloton will explode.

"I came here two years ago but had to pull out after three days as I was going to the Vuelta a España," the Letterkenny rider said.

"I think the race is going to be a little bit unpredictable. I have to wait and see how it pans out. It would nice to be the leader of the team in my home event but we will have to see how it goes.

"I'm going well lately, though, so I hope it works out well for me."

Fellow Irish rider Mark Cassidy is also looking forward to a rare chance to race against the world's top riders on home soil.

"I'd love to get up on a stage or in the overall," he said. "I had an injury for a long time but I feel that I am coming around in the last few weeks."

His An Post M Donnelly Grant Thornton Seán Kelly team-mate Niko Eeckhout took a victory in GP Stad Zottegem on Tuesday, and Cassidy is hoping the Belgian can do the same again here.

"Niko is in great form and I think he could really do something here," he said. If so, it would be a huge boost for the Irish registered team.

Today's stage will be tinged by sadness, especially amongst the Irish riders. A minute's silence will be observed prior to the 10am rollout to mark the sudden passing of Paul Healion, the 31-year-old national time-trial champion who was tragically killed in a car crash on Sunday evening.

He was having his best ever season and was due to take part in the race with the Irish national team. Instead, he was buried in Dunboyne yesterday morning. Cassidy, like many others, was finding it hard to come to terms with that.

"Paul was a really good guy, and an inspiration for younger riders," he said. "He was a good friend and was supposed to be here. I would like to see an Irish rider win a stage or win overall. It doesn't matter who, it would be great to dedicate that to him."