Fresh from retaining their time trial title on Friday, Katie-George Dunlevy and Linda Kelly helped themselves to yet more gold at the UCI Para-cycling World Championships in Belgium on Sunday morning when they successfully defended their Road Race crown.
A hard-fought victory it was too, the pair having to contend with wet and windy conditions and a string of mechanical issues during the race, a puncture leaving them 25 seconds adrift of leaders Patrycja Kuter and Karolina Kolkowicz with just two laps to go.
But they dug deep and hunted the Polish team down, winning the race by 21 seconds in the end. Britain’s Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl, who finished two minutes and 40 seconds behind the Irish pair, took bronze.
“It was a really hard race, probably actually the hardest race we’ve had, and it was definitely just about not giving up, believing in yourself and just believing in each other,” said Dunlevy after.
RM Block
“We had a lot thrown at us with the slow puncture, the wheel change, the chain getting stuck. A lot of people had mechanicals though, it was pretty treacherous with the cobbles and the wet roads. But honestly, to be three-time double-double world champions is what we’ve been dreaming of and what we’ve been training for.”
Having enjoyed enormous success with her previous pilot Eve McCrystal, Dunlevy has been forging an equally profitable partnership with Wexford woman Kelly, the highlight their gold and silver at last year’s Paralympics. Rarely, though, have they had so much thrown at them in the course of a race.
“Myself and Katie are fighters, we never drop heads no matter what,” said Kelly. “We’re here to race and make the most of it, so we kept the heads. We hammered on, we never gave up. We got to the second hill, caught the Polish and time-trialed home.”
“We take confidence from the wins we’ve had, of course, but you never know what can happen on the day – you can never be complacent. Never complacent in training and never complacent in a race,” Dunlevy added.
Dunlevy (43) first medalled at the World Championships 11 years ago and has since amassed a mountain of honours. With four gold, six silver and three bronze medals, she is Ireland’s most successful Paralympic athlete of all time, her World Championship haul now up to 17 medals. She has been undecided about whether she will compete at Los Angeles 2028, but days like Sunday in Belgium might persuade her that there’s plenty left in the tank yet.
