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Ciaran Power Takes Career Best Result
Ciaran Power of the Linda McCartney Foods Cycling Team landed the best result
of his nascent professional career when he finished 5th on Stage 3 of the
Giro d'Italia today.
"Yes, I'm very pleased, but I know I can do better than that," said the young
man from Waterford who turned 24 last week.
There was a great send off from the start area for Matt Stephens this
morning. The British rider's double crash yesterday had caught the
imagination of the crowd and TV audience, who were delighted to see Matt leap
off of the ambulance stretcher and back on to his bike to finish the stage.
Despite a great deal of stiffness in his left knee and calf, Matt was able to
start today, and more pertinently, able to finish.
"It hurts when I get out of the saddle, and I feel as if I'm
"square-pedalling" a bit," said Matt afterwards. "But there's eighteen days
to go in this race, and I reckon that's plenty of time to get better. Today
should have seen me over the worst."
The race today took in the beautiful and breathtaking Tirreno coast road from
Pasteum down to Scalea. There were many rises, falls and twists in the route,
but when the peloton finally reached the finish loop of 25kms, there were
still 50 or more riders remaining at the front, including Ciaran, Max
Sciandri and Tayeb Braikia. Just as they were thinking about the finish for
Tayeb, the Dane punctured, leaving Max and Ciaran to fight it out with the
best sprinters.
"The whole field was in one long line, and it was really hard. I tried to
speak to Max, but we both had our hands full just trying to hold a place in
the line," reported Ciaran as he enjoyed a massage in the hotel afterwards.
"As the last 3kms came up, I started to feel pretty good, and when Cipollini
came past on the back of the Saeco train, I jumped on his wheel."
Cipollini went all out for the line, with Ciaran and the others flat out
alongside him. Jan Svorada, the Czech from Lampre flew up the outside of
Cipo', who veered menacingly into his rival's path to cross the line first.
The Lion King unsurprisingly found himself disqualified, and Svorada awarded
the stage.
Almost unnoticed in the subsequent melee and media madness, Ciaran Power had
clinched the best result of his career, and a great finish for Linda
McCartney. Never having been in this position approaching the finish in a
race such as the Tour of Italy, Ciaran felt he could have been more positive,
and the experience has given him a big confidence boost.
"Next time I'm in this situation, I'll win," he vowed.
Report by John Deering
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