Young Kilcullen cyclist Murphy lands European silver medal with superb performance

Kilcullen Cycling Club representative JB Murphy produced a fine performance in Portugal last night to earn himself a silver medal at the U23 European Championships.

The 17-year-old rider was competing in the Men's Junior Elimination Race, and he finished second from a field of 18 at the track in Anadia. Murphy quickly established his place at the front of the pack early in the race, and he remained there right until the riders crossed the finish line, though he was ultimately beaten to first place by Italian Michele Gazzoli while Spain Unai Iribar finished in third.

Murphy won the Irish National Cyclo-Cross Junior title earlier this year, and yesterday's performance capped a fine few months in his sporting career.

Murphy, who is more used to competing on outdoor tracks, told Cylcing Ireland after the race; “My first time on an indoor track was four weeks ago, and this was my first bunch race ever in an Velodrome! I spent a lot of time in the winter riding cyclo-cross and it definitely paid off in the road season. Before coming here my legs didn’t feel great in training, but today I felt good; I had good race legs today.”

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