Irish Para cyclists had a phenomenal weekend in Italy, winning seven medals at the 2026 UEC Para Cycling European Road Championships in Maniago and Montereale Valcellina.
Twelve athletes represented Ireland across the three days of competition, with the squad made up of Paralympians, established international riders and athletes making their European Championship debut.
Ireland finished the Championships with seven medals in total, including two gold, one silver and four bronze.
The final day of racing was capped by a brilliant performance from Richael Timothy, who was crowned European Road Race Champion in the Women’s C3 category. Timothy produced a superb sprint finish to beat Dutch rider Aniek van den Aarssen to the line, with France’s Tifany Huot Marchand taking bronze.
It was Timothy’s second medal of the Championships, having already won bronze in the Women’s C3 Time Trial on Friday.
Speaking after her time trial medal, Timothy said it had been “the best time trial ride of my life” and added that the result was special, but the biggest thing she would take from it was confidence. She carried that confidence into Sunday’s road race, where she delivered one of the standout Irish performances of the weekend.
Katie-George Dunlevy and Linda Kelly also added another European title to their already outstanding record, winning gold in the Women’s B Time Trial on Friday. The reigning World Champions finished just 0.75 seconds ahead of the bikes from Great Britain and Italy respectively.
Reflecting on the Championships, Kelly said she was “delighted to be returning home as European Time Trial Champion”, having also added a road race bronze alongside Dunlevy.
The pair’s European success also marked a return to a familiar competition for Kelly, who noted that the European Championships was one of her first tandem races with Dunlevy in Austria in 2022, where they also won the time trial title.
Making their European Championship debut together, Sinead Greenan and Alice Sharpe also produced an excellent performance in the Women’s B Time Trial, finishing fourth.
Both Irish tandems returned to action in Sunday’s Women’s B Road Race, where Greenan and Sharpe won a brilliant silver medal. Dunlevy and Kelly followed them home in third place to take bronze, completing another double podium for Ireland.
Heather Jameson also played a major part in Ireland’s medal haul, winning bronze in both the Women’s C2 Time Trial and Women’s C2 Road Race. Jameson backed up her time trial podium with another strong ride on Sunday, finishing third in the road race.
In the Men’s B category, Paralympian Damien Vereker and Mitchell McLaughlin finished eighth in the Time Trial and ninth in the Road Race. Ciaran O’Toole, piloted by Con Scully, made their Championship debut and finished 15th in the Time Trial before improving to 11th in the Road Race.
Allister MacSorley raced in the Men’s H4 category, finishing fifth in the Time Trial and 11th in the Road Race. Steven McGowan competed in the Men’s H3 events, finishing 15th in the Time Trial after a crash hampered a strong start, before placing 14th in the Road Race.
The timing of the results is significant, with the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships coming up in Huntsville, Alabama this September. After seven European medals in Italy, the Irish squad will now turn their focus to the next major test on the international calendar.
Irish Medal Summary:
Gold: Katie-George Dunlevy and Linda Kelly, Women’s B Time Trial
Gold: Richael Timothy, Women’s C3 Road Race
Silver: Sinead Greenan and Alice Sharpe, Women’s B Road Race
Bronze: Richael Timothy, Women’s C3 Time Trial
Bronze: Heather Jameson, Women’s C2 Time Trial
Bronze: Heather Jameson, Women’s C2 Road Race
Bronze: Katie-George Dunlevy and Linda Kelly, Women’s B Road Race
Meanwhile, Tom Williamson has won bronze at the European Triathlon Para Championships in Tarragona, securing his third consecutive European Championship medal in the Men’s PTS5 category.
Williamson finished third in Spain in a time of 1:02:18, adding to the European bronze medals he won in Vichy in 2024 and Besançon in 2025.
The Irish Para triathlete produced a strong all-round race, recording the second fastest swim split of the field in 9:40 before completing the bike leg in 31:04. He also produced the fastest second transition of the race, before closing out the run in 19:07.
Hungary’s Bence Mocsari won gold in 1:00:04, with Portugal’s Filipe Marques taking silver in 1:00:55.
The result continues a strong period of international consistency for Williamson, who has now stood on the European podium in each of the last three editions of the Championships.
Ireland had a strong team in action in Tarragona, with athletes competing across the Men’s PTS5, Women’s PTVI and Men’s PTVI categories.
In the Women’s PTVI race, Judith MacCombe and guide Eimear Nicholls finished fourth in 1:09:51, narrowly outside the podium places. The Irish pairing produced the fastest bike split of the race in 30:40, as well as the fastest second transition, before finishing just outside the medals.
For Chloe MacCombe, Tarragona also marked an important return to racing. Speaking before the European Championships, MacCombe said: “I love the challenge, but this race feels like more of a gratitude race for me. It has been a challenging year for me mentally, so to be wearing the Irish trisuit again, to finally have a guide in place, and to get a race start for the season means a huge amount.”
MacCombe raced with new guide Jemma Speers for the first time in Tarragona, with the pair finishing fifth in 1:11:52. They completed the swim in 12:20, the bike in 31:59 and closed out the race with a 21:19 run.
Following the race, MacCombe praised Speers for stepping into the role, after going from “three days cruising on a tandem” to taking on a 20km time trial, as well as the tethered swim and run in scorching heat.
In the Men’s PTVI race, Donnacha McCarthy and guide Sean Husband finished ninth in 1:07:41. The Irish pairing completed the swim in 12:56, the bike leg in 31:13 and closed out the race with a 20:46 run, gaining more valuable championship experience at European level.
Irish Results Summary:
Bronze: Tom Williamson, Men’s PTS5
4th: Judith MacCombe and guide Eimear Nicholls, Women’s PTVI
5th: Chloe MacCombe and guide Jemma Speers, Women’s PTVI
9th: Donnacha McCarthy and guide Sean Husband, Men’s PTVI
ENDS
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