Dundalk's Eve McCrystal signs off in style

Ireland celebrated an impressive double podium finish at the Women’s B Road Race in the 2024 UCI Road and Para-cycling World Championships in Zurich today.

Katie-George Dunlevy who was piloted by Linda Kelly claimed the gold medal, while Josephine Healion alongside Dundalk pilot Eve McCrystal took home the bronze.

This event also marked an emotional end to McCrystal’s illustrious career as she retired from elite-level piloting and capped it off with a well-deserved bronze.

Both Irish teams dominated the challenging 84.7km course. Healion and McCrystal took charge early, holding a lead for much of the race and gaining almost a minute on their closest rivals.

In the final stretch, the two Irish tandems worked alongside British pair Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl who took gold at the recent Paralympic Games.

Learning from their experience in Paris Dunlevy and Kelly managed to break away from the British bike and cross the finish line 1 minute and 23 seconds ahead to secure the win.

Speaking after the race, Dunlevy was thrilled with the result. She said: “To have two Irish bikes on the podium, us and then Eve and Josie, it was just textbook.

“What we were hoping for, what we were dreaming for, we were hoping to get that in Paris, but we didn’t. We came away with Silver, I was disappointed not to defend my title but to do it here at the Worlds, I’m so proud of us.

“It was an amazing race, really enjoyed the course, it was a bit of everything. It’s just really exciting, it’s great to have these courses for tandems and I just hope that in the future they’ll be more challenging like this with hills and descents and everything technical, because you know we’re well able for it.

“Just to have a combined championship is amazing, it’s been fantastic and hopefully there will be more like these. 

“We have a whole team behind us so it’s really to thank the team, and my family, my parents, my partner and all my sisters and everyone.

“We have a great support team believing in us so we believe in ourselves as well and that just helps so much.”

The championships brought an end to a long and demanding season for the pair, and Dunlevy welcomed the break ahead. She said: “A long-deserved break, it’s been a long, hard year for us but we’re delighted with the year.”

“Take a break now and set ourselves up for next year. We’ve had crashes on the bikes and illnesses, so mentally it’s been a tough year.

“Mentally it’s hard to prepare yourself for these races, it takes its toll on the body as well so yeah we’ll have a nice break and then we’ll get back to it again.”

For Healion and McCrystal, the bronze was a dream result. It was Healion’s first medal at a championship level, following strong performances at the Paralympics and in the Individual Time Trial earlier in the week.

McCrystal who is a key figure in Irish para-cycling fittingly ended her decade-long career with a world championship medal.

Her partnership with Dunlevy saw them achieve multiple Paralympic and World Championship successes with the most recent being a silver in the Women’s B 3000m Individual Pursuit in Paris.

As McCrystal steps away from the elite stage there is no doubt that Ireland's para-cycling future remains bright with athletes like Dunlevy, Kelly, and Healion continuing to showcase their talent on the world stage.