THE BICYCLE USED by an Irishman to win the World Cycle Race has been stolen.
Breifne Earley’s bike, along with another bicycle, was stolen from the back of his friend’s car in Carrick-on-Shannon on Sunday between 8 – 8.20pm.
Earley and a friend had been in Tuam, Co Galway that morning taking part in a charity cycle for suicide prevention charity Pieta House.
He told Morning Ireland, the bikes were “opportunistically taken off the back of his car when he was in a Chinese and a pub right beside his home for about 10 or 15 minutes”.
Earley said two men stole the bikes before taking off in a red van. CCTV footage of the incident has been handed over to gardaí, who have the registration number of the van.
In a post on his Facebook page, Earley wrote that one of the men was about 6’1″ with a blue hoodie and dark reddish hair, while the second man is described as 5’7″ with dark hair and glasses.
Earley’s bike, which he used to cycle the 30,000km race, is a Specialised Crux Carbon Pro that is white with black and red decals. The front derailleur is broken and it also has a distinctive “well worn” leather seat. It is worth €3,500 – €4,000.
His friend’s bike is a Cube Pedalathon that is black with white writing on the frame. It’s worth about €1,000.
“The bikes themselves are just material items, they can be replaced but it’s the sentimental value to them,” Earley said.
Anyone with information has been asked to contact local gardaí on 071 9620021 or Earlery at breifneearley@gmail.com.
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