Two cyclists from Donegal are on the way to Paris to compete in the Paralympic games.
Katie-George Dunlevy, whose father John hails from Mountcharles, and Mitchell McLaughlin from Drumkeen are on the 35-strong squad confirmed this week.
The Games get underway on August 28th.
Katie-George Dunlevy of the Donegal Bay Cycling Club is heading to her fourth Paralympic Games. The London-born athlete has won several gold medals at Paralympic Games and World Championships competing in the Women’s Tandem events.
Dunlevy partnered with pilot Linda Kelly on the road in 2023 and dominated at international events, picking up overall victory at the UCI Para-cycling World Cup before double gold at the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships.
Dunlevy’s games will begin on Friday 30th August with the Women’s B 1000m Time Trial. She also competes in the Women’s B 3000m Individual Pursuit and the Class B2 Road Race.
Velo Revolution clubman Mitchell McLaughlin joined the Ireland Para-cycling National Team in 2023 and is currently pilot to experienced rider Damien Vereker. The pilot is a sighted rider who sits at the front of the tandem with a vision-impaired cyclist.
Vereker and McLaughlin compete in both track and road events and picked up a 9th place finish in the time trial at the 2023 UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships.
Paris will be his first Paralympic Games.
McLaughlin and Vereker’s schedule starts with a 4000m individual pursuit on day 1 (29th August), a 1000m time trial on day 4, an individual time trial on day 7, and a road race on day 9.
The track events will be in the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome and the road events will take place in Clicky-Sous-Bois in Seine-Saint-Denis.
