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Hosted on Zwift, this year’s Championships featured the BRAEk-fast Crits and Grits course in Scotland. The women’s race covered one lap (20.8km), while the open race consisted of two laps (41.6km). Despite challenges caused by Storm Éowyn resulting in some riders being unable to compete, a strong field delivered thrilling racing in both categories.
The open race provided an exciting contest as Richard Barry successfully defended his title in a thrilling sprint finish. Barry and Stuart Millar formed an early breakaway, with Ian Inglis in close pursuit. The trio stayed competitive throughout the race, with Barry and Millar exchanging attacks while Inglis fought hard to stay in contention.
The final kilometers saw Barry and Millar locked in a tactical battle. Millar gave it his all, but Barry’s perfectly timed sprint on the uphill finish secured victory by just +0.47 seconds. Inglis, a standout performer in last year’s Cycling Ireland eSports Winter Series, held on for a hard-earned third place.
Richard Barry shared his thoughts on his second consecutive title: "I’m delighted to win the National Title and wear the jersey for another 12 months. I was super nervous this morning, and I knew how hard it would be to win this race again. Stuart and I broke away early, but Ian was never far off, which made it a very hard race. After attacking each other a couple of times and some cat and mouse, it came down to a two-up sprint up the hill to the finish, which suited me. I just stayed patient and then managed to hold Stuart off."
Stuart Millar expressed his satisfaction with the result, saying: "I have to be happy with how today’s race went considering my second child was born only a few days ago! I wasn’t even sure I’d make the start line, but I’m glad I did! The course made for a very attritional race, and once it came down to Richard Barry and myself, I knew I had to get creative to stand a chance. In the end, it came down to the last kick, and fair play to Richard, he has a great sprint and deserves the win!"
Defending champion Marine Lenehan retained her title with an impressive display of strength and strategy. She attacked on a short, steep climb midway through the course, establishing a 12-second lead with 10km remaining. From there, she extended her advantage to finish comfortably ahead of her closest rival, Alyson Lowry.
Marine Lenehan commented: "Thank you to all the people that have organised and hosted this event. It went smoothly as always, and I couldn’t be happier to have won again today. I was looking forward to this course as it really suited my characteristics.
My original plan was to wait until the last climb to attack, but I wanted to try something new for 2025 and attacked midway through the course on a short and steep climb. A gap opened, and then I guess it was a TT until the end. It’s a good start to 2025, and of course, the usual thank you to my coach Matteo Cigala and my team Dan Morrissey."
eSports Open Race
1st - Richard Barry - 1:01:56
2nd - Stuart Millar - 1:01:57 (+0.47)
3rd - Ian Inglis - 1:03:04 (+1.07)
eSports Women’s Race
1st - Marine Lenehan - 36:44
2nd - Alyson Lowry - 37:48 (+1:04)