Dean Harvey
As an Irish U23 champion, Harvey recently secured his place at Trinity Racing, a reflection of his stellar accomplishments to date. In January 2023, Martin was crowned elite national cyclocross champion at the McCrystal Track in Dundalk, a highly impressive feat for the 19-year- old.
Hailed as one of the brightest prospects in domestic cycling, the Belfast native also secured 4th place in the Irish National Road Race Championships last year. It’s evident that Harvey certainly is one to watch.
Áine Doherty
VC Glendale’s Áine Doherty already has three U16 titles under her belt, after storming last year’s Youth National Road Race Championships in the road race, TT and criterium disciplines.
Her other notable achievements include a top 10 placement at the European Youth Olympics in the time trial. This year, she’ll be moving into junior races, so we’ll be expecting to see a lot more of her in the near future.
Liam O’Brien
At only 15 years of age, Cork teenager Liam O’Brien won the Irish U16 criterium title in 2021. As a Fermoy CC rider, O’Brien also stormed to victory in the National Cyclocross Championships last year, in his very first appearance at the event.
While already well known on the domestic junior front, O’Brien has also ventured over to the UK, Belgium and Portugal for races, while at the same time studying for his Leaving Certificate. And, despite an unfortunate crash during the UCI Cyclocross World Cup in December 2022, O’Brien still managed to bag a podium finish with a brilliant 3rd place.
Archie Ryan
Team Jumbo-Visa member and Rathmichael native Archie Ryan already has a series of excellent results behind him. The 21-year-old made his World Cup debut at the Okola Slovenska, winning the second stage and solidifying his place among the best of the U23 cohort.
Looking towards the future, Ryan is preparing for what the 2023 season has to offer, and we’d agree that the best is yet to come for this rising star.
JB Murphy
Professional road and track cyclist JB Murphy is already well known within the Team Ireland circuit. Some of his major results to date include a Gold Medal in the U23 Scratch Race at the 2021 Belgian International Track Meeting and a Silver Medal in the omnium at the Trofeu Internacional De Pista just last month.
23-year-old Murphy, who rides for EvoPro Racing, will now be setting his sights on more victories in the velodrome over the 12 months to come.
We may have given you a whistle-stop tour of the ones to watch this year, but get up to speed with the discipline of cyclocross with this beginner’s guide.
