For the third year in a row, the Rás Tailteann will finish its journey in the Royal County. In 2025 and 2024, the celebrated race came to its end in Bective. The 2026 event, marking the 71st event in its history, will be crossing the line along the Summerhill Road in Dunboyne. The Rás takes place over the course of five days, or stages, and will come to its conclusion in Dunboyne on the 24th of May.
Local Councillor Maria Murphy shared her optimistic view on the event. “I can’t wait! I think it’s going to be a brilliant day for Dunboyne. We’ve had The Rás through Dunboyne and along the bypass a number of times, but we’ve never had the finish in Dunboyne before.”
Cllr. Murphy explained how Dunboyne has a strong history with cycling, and indeed with the Rás itself. “We have a long history of cycling in Dunboyne. We have two former Rás winners from Dunboyne and a number of cycling clubs”. Dunboyne was the starting point for the Rás in 2013 and 2015, when the event was known as An Post Rás.
“It’ll be a great afternoon for the village.”
Regardless of whether you’re a fan of cycling, the Rás will be an event worth getting a look at if you can. Former Rás competitor and Team Ireland Olympian John McQuaid gave insight into what the event will look like on Sunday.
“Coming through the town they’ll probably be going 47 or 48 kilometres an hour. To see fellas going that fast is something else. The finish is fantastic as well. It’s kind of like a hockey match if you’ve never seen it, it’s a great spectacle.”
“Even if you don’t know anything about cycling, it’s a spectacle to see. All the team cars going by, the team tactics, it’s definitely something to watch.”
The Rás is a fantastic opportunity to see potential future Olympians, also. McQuaid credits his performance in the 1988 Rás for his selection to represent Ireland in that years’ Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
Spanning from Thursday to Sunday, the riders will have travelled just under 800km by the time they reach the finish line. The route this year will begin in Portlaois, to King John’s Castle in Co. Limerick on day 1. Over the next 4 days, the athletes will travel from Cork, Wexford, Carlow and finally, Dunboyne.
McQuaid spoke about the toughness of the athletes which is on display every year at the Rás. “If you crash it’s get back up. There’s no lying down. Let’s say you crash on Day 2, there’s no lying down and I’ll be okay tomorrow. You have to catch the group ahead and see if you’ll be okay tomorrow. You often see some guys with their trousers ripped, you often have guys finishing a race with broken arms or broken elbows just to see if they can race the next day. It’s a group of really tough individuals. Quite gladiatorial really.”
With the event less than a month away, 180 athletes are preparing themselves for what is to come ahead. 24-year-old Liam Crowley will be making his fourth appearance at the Rás, representing Team Ireland. He spoke about his feelings this close to the race.
“I’m really excited for it. The Rás Tailteann is the biggest event in Ireland, if not Ireland and the UK. It’s a great event. There are teams from all over Europe coming so there’s a lot of talent.”
The mention of international attention and talent is significant. The Rás is a revered event in the international cycling scene and it attracts riders from all over the world. In the 13 events since 2009, only two of the event winners have been Irish riders, Daire Feeley in 2022 and Dillon Corkery in 2023.
Along with the 15 Irish teams, the event will consist of a total of 145 riders spanning from USA and Mexico to European teams such as Germany and the Netherlands.
Crowley detailed his preparation for the event ahead. As the most senior member of Team Ireland, he has taken on the role of guiding some of the younger athletes, particularly the junior riders. “For me, I’ll probably be doing a few easy rides and a few short intervals. Then, getting my head in the right place. I think probably 90% of the whole preparation is probably getting your mental game in check and going over the stages to make sure you’re doing your best.”
On the final stage, the athletes will be leaving from Carlow at 12 o’ clock noon. The route will take them through Kildare and entering Meath via Dunsaughlin at an estimated half past 1.
The Meath County Council have notified the road closures for the event as follows:
- (Staffordstown) from its junction with R-156 to its junction with L-6220 (Ballymacoll) from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.
- (Ballymacoll) from its junction with L-2201 (Staffordstown) to its junction with R-157 from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.
- (Maynooth Road) from the roundabout junction on R-157 to its junction with L-2228 (Summerhill Road) from 1.30pm to 4pm L-5113 from its junction with L-2228 (Station Road) to its junction with L-2227 (Maynooth Road) from 1.30pm to 4pm.
- (Summerhill Road) from its junction with L-2227 (Maynooth Road) to the roundabout junction on R-157 from 12 noon to 4.30pm.
Alternative routes are available on the Meath county council website. www.meath.ie
