IT was a memorable weekend for West Belfast cyclist Brendan Doherty and his 12-year-old daughter Aíne as they both claimed victory in the National Cyclocross Championship in Cork.
Brendan sealed his first national title last Sunday by winning the Masters (M50) category while Aíne won the U14 crown on Saturday.
The youngster is no stranger to success having swept the boards last year – winning six major titles and a host of other Irish and Ulster races.
Last November, she rounded off a memorable campaign by winning the Young Sports Achievement award at the Inspirational Youth of the West Awards. According to her father, Aíne takes all her success in her stride.
“Having the two of us win on the same weekend was something special,” said Brendan.
“She is a special talent – I know she is my own daughter, but she is special. She has been riding a bike since she was six and, it may be a bad thing but she has never been beaten.
"She is riding at a level way above her age. Last year she won six national championships. That’s her first national title of this year and it was the first time she could race in it because it only starts at U14.
“She will be hoping to win all those races again this year because, to be fair, there’s nobody really there at that level at the minute.
“For her it is easy. She is just one of those kids who has a natural talent for riding a bike.”
Given all her success at such a young age, Brendan feels it is important to do his bit to help keep Aíne grounded. To that end, he says he keeps his pre-race advice to his daughter pretty simple.
“Going down to the race, she is undoubtedly going to be favourite and this is something we talk about quite a bit,” added Doherty.
“There is a lot of pressure on her to win.
“She said: ‘Everyone just expects me to win’.
“I told her not to worry about it, just go and ride your bike and enjoy yourself.
“Long term, you’d like to hope she could go on to bigger and better things, but we try not to put too much pressure on her at this stage. She won’t turn 13 until March and, at that age, it is more about keeping them interested in the sport.”
While Aíne has a host of further targets this season, her father says he will enjoy the privilege of wearing the Irish jersey for the rest of the year.
“It has taken me all of my cycling career to win a national title,” stated Doherty.
“They don’t come easy to some people. I’ve represented Ireland and I’ve represented Northern Ireland in the Commonwealth Games.
“I’ve tried to win the M40 title for the last five years and now I’ve won the M50 title in my first year as a 50-year-old.
“One of the honours is that you get to wear the national jersey for the year. That’s a big deal in cycling. Anytime you see the Tour De France, you always see the various national flags throughout the peloton.
“I get to wear ours, which is a ‘shamrock’ jersey, for the rest of the year. “
