Several weeks before he lines out in the omnium races at the Olympic Games, Martyn Irvine is currently competing in the Irish road race championships. Although much of his focus has been on track racing for the past two years, he’s hoping to be able to land a good result in Clonmel today.
“I will be there in some shape or form,” he said after picking up silver in the time trial championships three days ago. “I am good at suffering so you never know where you can get on the day. I always look forward to it every year – it is something every Irish rider wants to do. I can’t miss it when I am in the country.”
Irvine could well be a danger man if he can handle the climbs on the circuit; this year they are more rolling drags than tougher ascents this year, and he'll hope that this will mean his track musculature isn’t disadvantaged. He’s got a lot of speed so if he’s there in the finale, he’ll be one to watch.
Further ahead, he’s determined to try to chase a medal in his first Olympics. That’ll depend on him stepping things up slightly from the World Cup races, where he often placed between fifth and seventh. Part of the equation is getting things right tactically; part is about gaining a little more condition.
He used the An Post Rás to build a base and since then has done blocks of road and track at this training base in Majorca, where he works with former US Olympic coach Andy Sparks.
Asked if he thinks he’s on track, he’s positive about things. “I think so. My numbers are all good. I don’t want to be a geek, but average watts are good, weight is coming down a bit; it is working, everything is going in the right direction,” he said.
“I am just following the coach. Pretty similar to what I did in the World Cups. I don’t want to change too much. We know what works…it is refining body weight, that bit of intense [work] and a bit more motivation…that will help the training.
“No rocket science...I will just repeat the formula that I have been using in the last two years, just do it better this time.”