Irish rider Mark Scanlon today finished an excellent second in a top French amateur race, the Gp de la Foire Expo de Rennes event in France. Scanlon used his strong sprint to good effect when he led home a group of nine riders who finished 35 seconds behind Nantes 44 Cyclisme team-mate Yuriy Krivsov of the Ukraine.
The display marks the best ride yet this year by the 20-year-old former world junior champion and bodes well for the remainder of the season. "It is an excellent result for Mark," enthused his agent Frank Quinn. "He sounded very positive, very motivated at the weekend and it was clear that he was gearing up to do a ride. But I think he is going to build yet further on this – he hasn’t been racing that long and should be really flying in a few weeks."
The result is particularly encouraging when one considers that Scanlon was hampered by a later-than-usual start to racing, following the collapse of the Linda McCartney team at the end of January. Instead of making his professional debut, the 20-year-old was left stranded at home in Sligo while his agent Frank Quinn searched for a new team. He secured a place with the French amateur Nantes 44 squad three weeks ago and will begin a trial with the division 1 Mercury team in September.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
