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Michael Dennehy from Kilbrin finished off a distinguished
Under-age and Junior cycling career in October 2000, with his second
appearance for the Irish team in the World Junior Cycling Championships
in Plouray, Brittany.
Few riders can match his record. At under-age level, from the age of twelve to sixteen,
Michael won no less than seven All-Ireland individual and team medals. In his final year
as an U-16, he won a stage at the International Youth Tour in Manchester and came third
overall in his first International event.
His Junior career got off to a spectacular start when he won the All-Ireland road race
in 1999 and later went on to represent Ireland at the Word Championships, along with three
other team-mates from Kanturk Credit Union Cycling Club. He also had a second and third
placing in Junior Tour of Ireland stage ends.
He was pipped into second place in the Junior All-Ireland this year by a French-based
rider, and went on to win stages of the Senior three-day events at Gorey and Dunboyne. In
the Junior Tour of Ireland, he fought off the challenges of the English, Dutch and French
climbers and clenched the "King of the Hills" jersey in Wicklow mountains.
Michael was an automatic choice for the Irish team again this year for the Junior World
Championships, but a broken bottom bracket put paid to any hopes of a good result.
While Michael can be justly proud of his accomplishments, there is no doubt that he is
one of the victims of the poor level of support and funding for our promising and elite
athletes. This situation has been highlighted and questioned following the poor Irish
showing at the Olympics, but athletes like Michael are only too well aware of the reality
that is only now beginning to dawn on the general sporting public.
Comparison between the Irish Junior cyclists and their British counterparts illustrates
the gap. Even though cycling is also a minority sport in Britain, the Junior cycling team
receives major funding from their national lottery and gets top level coaching,
competition, equipment and medical monitoring. They competed in over 10 major
International events before the World championships, including stage races and World Cup
events.
By comparison, Michael Dennehy had to pay for his own equipment and medical expenses.
The Irish team had no collective training and only one race abroad, just a few weeks
before the World championships. In the period leading up to the event, there wasn't even
regular top level competition available at home. While local clubs can develop riders to a
certain level, international success cannot be expected without professional planning and
the financial resources to match it. "Without the funding, you just can't have the
preparation - its as simple as that", observes Michael.
Michael Dennehy therefore falls into the category of potential International athletes
whose talent and determination meets a false ceiling due to lack of investment and a
professional approach, to the best international standards, to the development of
top-level athletes. He possesses all the qualities of an elite cyclist. Apart from natural
talent, he is intensely competitive on the road, has tactical sense, can climb and sprint,
and has the ability to flog himself to the limits of his physical capability.
This was evident in this year's Junior Tour of Ireland, where Michael was confined by
the tactical demands of an Irish team that was weak by top international standards. Yet,
he dominated in the mountains, where the advantage of team support and demand is reduced.
His class and potential were perhaps most obvious on the final stage when the British and
Dutch team, while fighting out for the eventual winner, brought the average speed for the
stage to an astonishing thirty miles per hour. Michael was third over the line at the end
and won one of the "King of the Hills" primes on the way.
But his athletic characteristics, along with the tens of thousands of training miles
that he has clocked up from an early age, have not been matched by a fair and necessary
input for international preparation. Given the right circumstances, he demonstrated beyond
doubt that he could "mix it" with some of the world's best. However, the support
for preparation for International competition exemplifies our amateurish approach and
commitment to strategic planning for success on the world stage. |
