Cuchulainn Cycling Club host 2022 Awards Night

Earlier this month, Cuchulainn Cycling Club once again held its end of year prize giving, the first after the Covid enforced hiatus. Held in the Lisdoo bar and Restaurant, it was a night for the cyclists to celebrate all their achievements and adventures over the previous 12 months.

Cindy Black and Jim Doyle were recognised for their outstanding year on the bike by being crowned Female and Male Leisure Cyclists of the Year respectively.

On the road racing scene Robert Neary had an outstanding season, winning one of the 1st races of the year, held in Newry back in March. This win saw him rise to the A3 rank, where he continued to perform admirably. These results saw him awarded Road Racing Cyclist of the Year.

PJ Hynes continued to be the dominant cyclists on the off-road scene, which meant he was a worthy winner of the Off-Road Cyclist of the Year category.

Most improved female and male cyclists were Rebecca McKay and Jack Gregory respectively.  Both have been involved in the sport for several years, but 2022 really saw them push on and rack up some big miles in the saddle.

Such is the success the club is having in underage cycling; both the boy and girl categories saw two winners. Grace O`Rourke and Holly Caggrey were the underage Female Cyclists of the Year.

These two ladies were part of a club team that has been incredibly strong, especially in the cyclo-cross discipline. That has also resulted in the club's riders racking up a considerable amount of Leinster Cycling selections this season.

Meanwhile, just as worth of plaudits were Sean Delaney and Oliver O'Shaughnessy, who were the Male Underage Cyclists of the Year.

The Cuchulainn Spirit of the Year award was presented to Jacqueline Healy, in recognition of her outstanding year as ladies’ representative.

Her greatest achievement was the successful running of the Lady's Lap of Louth in September. The event which saw over 200 women complete one of two routes around the county. It was a huge success and would not have been possible without the work of the committee, led by Jacqueline.

The final award on the night was the Club Person of the Year and with so many great nominees the club had to pick two.

First up was Jim Wallace. A relatively latecomer to the sport, Jim was there to help at all events throughout the year, from the summer league right through to the kids’ training session.

If a bike was involved Jim was there to lend a hand, driving the club van, arriving early to set everything up and staying late to clean up afterwards.

The other joint winner was Jason Malone, for his stellar work throughout the year on the off-road scene. Jason was especially instrumental on the youth development side of the sport.

This started with a youth development programme implemented last year, bringing in professional expertise to help younger members get their start in the sport, all the way through to coaching and developing their technical skills.

This year many of these underage riders stepped up to compete in the club's off-Road League, again driven by Jsaon and the strong committee he helped put together. The league grew to become one of the strongest in the county, attracting riders on a weekly basis from Ulster and Leinster.

Additionally, Jason had a strong season himself with two podiums in the Senior 3XC NPS league and a top 25 finish in the famed Cooley Thriller.