2025 Rás na mBan stages 1 and 2: McWilliam leads after opening two stages
From teamless to magenta in a week. Alice McWilliam leads Rás na mBan after two stages, backed by her Team Phoenix composite squad. Amelia Cebak in Best Young Rider white adds to a strong British start.
The opening two stages of Rás na mBan 2025 have already underlined why Ireland’s premier international stage race remains such an absorbing contest. A French victory in Freshford was followed by Dutch delight in Gorey, but the magenta leader’s jersey now rests on the shoulders of Britain’s Alice McWilliam(Team Phoenix) — a fitting reward for two days of consistently strong riding.
It is also a story of resilience. Just last week, McWilliam was left without a team when Hess Cycling folded abruptly, forcing her to scramble for a ride. The Rás offered a lifeline: she lined up as part of the Team Phoenix composite squad, alongside former Hess teammates Betty Hasse and Elena Wu-Yan. Within days, she has turned that opportunity into the race lead.
The race rolled away under heavy skies from Kilkenny for its redesigned 76-kilometre opener into Freshford. A stubborn headwind ensured the peloton stayed compact until the first classified climb, Kearney’s Hill, where the pressure ramped up sharply.
French national amateur champion Noémie Abgrall (Ladynamips RVC) proved strongest on the ascent, cresting first ahead of Team Ireland’s Esther Wong. The acceleration scattered riders out the back, but the front of the bunch remained largely intact. The pattern repeated on the second climb at Rathealy Hill, with Abgrall once again first over the top, cementing her place in the IVCA Wicklow 200 Queen of the Mountains jersey.
The crest of Rathealy left just six kilometres to the line. The pace never let up, with teams jostling for position in the twisting run-in. In the reduced sprint, it was Abgrall’s teammate Océane Goergen who had the final say, timing her kick perfectly to hold off Alice McWilliam and Erin Creighton (Team Ireland).
For McWilliam, second place was a statement of intent, a marker that Team Phoenix had brought a squad not just to animate the race but to challenge for the overall. Behind them, Amelia Cebak (Smurfit Westrock CT) finished strongly, while Creighton’s third place earned her the Sport Ireland Best Young Rider jersey. Ireland’s double para-cycling world champion Linda Kelly (Cycling Ireland Women’s Commission) took over the Kilkenny CoCo Best Irish Rider classification.
Goergen pulled on the magenta jersey, giving Ladynamips RVC a double lead with Abgrall in polka dots, while the British riders left Freshford with podiums, jerseys, and quiet confidence.
If the first stage was about control, the second was about survival. The 104-kilometre run from Kilkenny to Gorey looked benign at rollout, with dry roads and a tailwind speeding the peloton through the opening kilometres. But the climb of Sliabh Buí — and a sudden change in the weather — transformed the race.
The steep gradients of the second-category ascent shredded the bunch. A breakaway trio featuring Grace Reynolds (Smurfit Westrock CT), Sarah Pope (Ladynamips RVC) and Gertrud Riis Madsen (Team Aalborg Sparekassen) briefly animated proceedings, with Reynolds showing real grit to lead over the summit. But the chaos behind was decisive.
Image: Lorraine O’Sullivan
Torrential rain, crashes and the sheer ferocity of the climb created multiple splits. Crucially, overnight leader Goergen was caught in the wrong half of the peloton, left with just one teammate for support. As the front group of 22 riders pressed on — with Team Phoenix vigilant in defence of McWilliam — the gap ballooned past two minutes, all but ending Goergen’s GC hopes.
The race was far from settled, though. Abgrall extended her QoM lead on Ballymore Hill, while Kelly kept the Irish colours visible at the front, sweeping up valuable points. In the final run to Gorey, WV Breda’s Noor Dekker — runner-up overall here last year — delivered on her promise. Launched superbly by her teammates, she opened up daylight in the sprint and held off Abgrall and Olympia Norrid-Mortenson (Torelli) for a commanding victory.
Dekker wins stage 2. Image: Lorraine O’Sullivan
McWilliam, riding cannily near the front, finished in the lead group to take over the magenta jersey. Level on time with Dekker, the Briton’s higher placings across the two stages give her the edge on countback. She also moves to the top of the Cycling Ireland Points classification.
Cebak was again rewarded for her consistency, pulling on the Sport Ireland Best Young Rider jersey, while Kelly remains the Best Irish Rider.
Rider spotlight: Alice McWilliam – from Hess collapse to magenta jersey
Just one week ago, Alice McWilliam found herself teamless after the sudden closure of Hess Cycling. For many riders, that might have meant an abrupt and premature end to the season.
But Rás na mBan is built on opportunities, and McWilliam has grabbed hers with both hands. Lining up in Kilkenny as part of Team Phoenix, a composite team formed with fellow ex-Hess riders Betty Hasse and Elena Wu-Yan, she turned adversity into triumph.
A podium on Stage 1 in Freshford was followed by a canny ride in the rain-splintered Stage 2 to Gorey, where she inherited the magenta jersey as race leader. She also tops the points classification.
Composite teams like Phoenix have long been a hallmark of Rás na mBan, giving riders caught between contracts the chance to stay in the race. For McWilliam, it has proved transformative: from the uncertainty of a lost team to the exhilaration of leading Ireland’s biggest stage race in less than a week.
British fortunes after two days
Alice McWilliam (Team Phoenix) — Magenta jersey and Points jersey. Just a week after losing her team, she now leads Ireland’s biggest stage race.
Amelia Cebak (Smurfit Westrock CT) — Best Young Rider jersey.
What’s next
Stage 3 takes the riders 104 kilometres from Portlaoise to Mountrath, with the first-category ascent of The Cut in the Slieve Bloom mountains as the centrepiece. It is a climb steeped in Rás na mBan history, long enough and hard enough to rip the GC apart.
For McWilliam, it is the first true test of her grip on magenta. For Dekker, it’s a chance to prove her climbing legs. And for Abgrall and the other punchy climbers, it is the opportunity to prise open the race.
The opening two stages of Rás na mBan 2025 have already underlined why Ireland’s premier international stage race remains such an absorbing contest. A French victory in Freshford was followed by Dutch delight in Gorey, but the magenta leader’s jersey now rests on the shoulders of Britain’s Alice McWilliam (Team Phoenix) — a fitting reward for two days of consistently strong riding.
It is also a story of resilience. Just last week, McWilliam was left without a team when Hess Cycling folded abruptly, forcing her to scramble for a ride. The Rás offered a lifeline: she lined up as part of the Team Phoenix composite squad, alongside former Hess teammates Betty Hasse and Elena Wu-Yan. Within days, she has turned that opportunity into the race lead.
Featured image: Lorraine O’Sullivan
Report
Stage 1: Goergen strikes, McWilliam signals intent
The race rolled away under heavy skies from Kilkenny for its redesigned 76-kilometre opener into Freshford. A stubborn headwind ensured the peloton stayed compact until the first classified climb, Kearney’s Hill, where the pressure ramped up sharply.
French national amateur champion Noémie Abgrall (Ladynamips RVC) proved strongest on the ascent, cresting first ahead of Team Ireland’s Esther Wong. The acceleration scattered riders out the back, but the front of the bunch remained largely intact. The pattern repeated on the second climb at Rathealy Hill, with Abgrall once again first over the top, cementing her place in the IVCA Wicklow 200 Queen of the Mountains jersey.
The crest of Rathealy left just six kilometres to the line. The pace never let up, with teams jostling for position in the twisting run-in. In the reduced sprint, it was Abgrall’s teammate Océane Goergen who had the final say, timing her kick perfectly to hold off Alice McWilliam and Erin Creighton (Team Ireland).
For McWilliam, second place was a statement of intent, a marker that Team Phoenix had brought a squad not just to animate the race but to challenge for the overall. Behind them, Amelia Cebak (Smurfit Westrock CT) finished strongly, while Creighton’s third place earned her the Sport Ireland Best Young Rider jersey. Ireland’s double para-cycling world champion Linda Kelly (Cycling Ireland Women’s Commission) took over the Kilkenny CoCo Best Irish Rider classification.
Goergen pulled on the magenta jersey, giving Ladynamips RVC a double lead with Abgrall in polka dots, while the British riders left Freshford with podiums, jerseys, and quiet confidence.
Stage 2: Dekker storms Gorey, McWilliam takes magenta
If the first stage was about control, the second was about survival. The 104-kilometre run from Kilkenny to Gorey looked benign at rollout, with dry roads and a tailwind speeding the peloton through the opening kilometres. But the climb of Sliabh Buí — and a sudden change in the weather — transformed the race.
The steep gradients of the second-category ascent shredded the bunch. A breakaway trio featuring Grace Reynolds (Smurfit Westrock CT), Sarah Pope (Ladynamips RVC) and Gertrud Riis Madsen (Team Aalborg Sparekassen) briefly animated proceedings, with Reynolds showing real grit to lead over the summit. But the chaos behind was decisive.
Torrential rain, crashes and the sheer ferocity of the climb created multiple splits. Crucially, overnight leader Goergen was caught in the wrong half of the peloton, left with just one teammate for support. As the front group of 22 riders pressed on — with Team Phoenix vigilant in defence of McWilliam — the gap ballooned past two minutes, all but ending Goergen’s GC hopes.
The race was far from settled, though. Abgrall extended her QoM lead on Ballymore Hill, while Kelly kept the Irish colours visible at the front, sweeping up valuable points. In the final run to Gorey, WV Breda’s Noor Dekker — runner-up overall here last year — delivered on her promise. Launched superbly by her teammates, she opened up daylight in the sprint and held off Abgrall and Olympia Norrid-Mortenson (Torelli) for a commanding victory.
McWilliam, riding cannily near the front, finished in the lead group to take over the magenta jersey. Level on time with Dekker, the Briton’s higher placings across the two stages give her the edge on countback. She also moves to the top of the Cycling Ireland Points classification.
Cebak was again rewarded for her consistency, pulling on the Sport Ireland Best Young Rider jersey, while Kelly remains the Best Irish Rider.
Rider spotlight: Alice McWilliam – from Hess collapse to magenta jersey
Just one week ago, Alice McWilliam found herself teamless after the sudden closure of Hess Cycling. For many riders, that might have meant an abrupt and premature end to the season.
But Rás na mBan is built on opportunities, and McWilliam has grabbed hers with both hands. Lining up in Kilkenny as part of Team Phoenix, a composite team formed with fellow ex-Hess riders Betty Hasse and Elena Wu-Yan, she turned adversity into triumph.
A podium on Stage 1 in Freshford was followed by a canny ride in the rain-splintered Stage 2 to Gorey, where she inherited the magenta jersey as race leader. She also tops the points classification.
Composite teams like Phoenix have long been a hallmark of Rás na mBan, giving riders caught between contracts the chance to stay in the race. For McWilliam, it has proved transformative: from the uncertainty of a lost team to the exhilaration of leading Ireland’s biggest stage race in less than a week.
British fortunes after two days
What’s next
Stage 3 takes the riders 104 kilometres from Portlaoise to Mountrath, with the first-category ascent of The Cut in the Slieve Bloom mountains as the centrepiece. It is a climb steeped in Rás na mBan history, long enough and hard enough to rip the GC apart.
For McWilliam, it is the first true test of her grip on magenta. For Dekker, it’s a chance to prove her climbing legs. And for Abgrall and the other punchy climbers, it is the opportunity to prise open the race.
Results
Stage 1 Results (Kilkenny → Freshford, 76.1km)
Stage 2 Results (Kilkenny → Gorey, 104.2km)
General Classification after Stage 2
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