Ferbane cyclist to compete in 2026 Rás Tailteann

Ferbane cyclist Mikey Flaherty will compete in his third Rás Tailteann race when the international cycling event starts in Portlaoise on Wednesday, May 20.

A member of the Moynalty Cycling team, the 21 year old will be hoping to improve upon his 2025 Rás Tailteann showing when he finished inside the top 25 cyclists at the end of the five stage event.

The 71st edition of the race start in the Midlands town on Wednesday, May 20, heading south-west to finish in the historic Limerick heritage town of Kilmallock.

Stage two will see a transfer to Rathmore, County Kerry, where a long and demanding day awaits, taking in Kenmare, West Cork, the famed Tunnel Road/Caha Pass, Glengarriff and Gougane Gap before finishing in Banteer, County Cork.

Another transfer brings the race to Mitchelstown, County Cork for the start of stage three. A fast and technical stage will cross into Wexford, finishing with an uphill drag into Enniscorthy.

Stage four sees Rás Tailteann return to the Wicklow Mountains for the first time in eight years, starting in Carlow and finishing in Baltinglass. Riders will tackle the iconic Drumgoff/Shay Elliott Memorial and Wicklow Gap climbs on what promises to be one of the decisive days of the race.

The final stage will again start in Carlow, before crossing the plains of Carlow and Kildare, including the Category 3 Hill of Allen, and finishing in Dunboyne, County Meath, where three laps of a testing finishing circuit will decide both the stage winner and the overall champion of Rás Tailteann 2026.

The 2026 edition of the race is again five stages and will cover 785 kilometres along the roads of Ireland, including 21 categorised climbs.