Irish attack falls just short as Brits' sprint to gold

The front of the women’s B road race had been reduced to two bikes by halfway. The British pair of Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl pedaled up alongside the Irish pair of Linda Kelly and Katie-George Dunlevy and fired across a proposal.

The Brits said they’d share the workload out front if the Irish promised not to attack them.

The Brits, who are sprint specialists, were basically asking to keep matters steady and polite at the front until the finish line came into view, at which point it was every woman and bike for themselves.

The Irish are not sprinters, they are climbers and sufferers. They told the Brits where they could stick their offer.

“I said, ‘well I’m not promising anything’,” pilot Linda Kelly replied to the proposed Irish-British pact.

The woman behind her was far more definitive.

“I said, ‘no’,” Katie-George began.

“We did a big effort to get away and that's when we lost the other bikes and realised they were there. I said to them, ‘help us, get in front’, because usually you do up and overs and take turns to try and get away from the other bikes behind.

“She said, ‘no, we are working for Corrine and Lora (the other GB bike), we’ll work with you if you don’t attack us’. And I said, ‘no, I’m sorry, we are going to attack you’.” 

The Irish attacked. They repeatedly attacked. But they just could not shake the bike superglued to their back wheel.

In the end, it came down to the sprint the Irish didn’t want it to come down to. The Brits charged to the front with 300 metres to go and took the win with three seconds to spare.

For the Irish pair, a frustrating race and failed defence of Tokyo gold.

“It’s part of the game, but it is frustrating, yeah,” Katie-George added of how the race unfolded.

“I believe we are the strongest bike, so we should and could have won. But that's road racing for you. It is a bit of a lottery.” Dunlevy reckoned they had the British pair at the point of breaking several times. At the last hill, there was one ferocious last push to try and eke out a gap. No joy.

“Round the corner then, they went past us, and we were just done by then. We’ve come away with silver, and even though I wanted to retain my title and win gold, that's what I really wanted, I have to remember I have a silver, gold, and silver from these Games.” 

With the curtain now fallen on her fourth Paralympic Games, with the medal collection swelled to eight (four gold and four silver), and with the 42-year-old having contributed half of Ireland’s six-medal haul in Paris, it was only natural to inquire if there was another four-year cycle in the legs and head.

“LA, I need to look at a few things, debrief and assess stuff, we’ll see. It’s a long commitment,” Katie-George replied.

Her legacy, irrespective of when she parks up the tandem bike, is long secured.

“I was asked why am I still doing it, why have I still got that drive? I think it’s just to kind of give back and inspire the next generation, inspire children.

“Even my younger self, I didn’t have anybody to look up to, any idols, so if it just inspires any child with vision impairment to believe in themselves then that’s my job done.” 

Eve McCrystal, who piloted Dunlevy to gold in this event three years ago and who piloted Josephine Healion to fourth yesterday, heads off into retirement with three gold and three silver Paralympic medals in the front basket.

“It has been a hell of a journey, ten years. I have six Paralympic medals, I have given everything to the Paralympics. It will sink in eventually when I get home, ten years is a long time, but I’m ready to go,” she said after her final Paralympic outing.

That place of letting go, Dunlevy does not yet know if she has reached that destination.