Cycling starlet Lara Gillespie's ambitions are on track

Lara Gillespie has taken an unusual route to elite cycling, but the Enniskerry 21-year-old now has a crystal clear focus on her ultimate ambition as she prepares for the Track World Championships in Paris.

The 2021 U-23 European Championship silver medallist won two stages in last month's Rás na mBan and is the youngest member of the six-woman team selected for the Worlds, wich take place from 12 to 16 October. Kelly Murphy, Emily Kay, Mia Griffin, Alice Sharpe and Orla Walsh complete the lineup.

Gillespie's first love was hockey - she represented Leinster - but she was also a very talented runner and was selected to represent her country at the 2017 Youth Olympics before a broken elbow changed her path.

"I was in fourth year, TY [transition year] at school," Gillespie told RTÉ 2fm's Game On.

"I was still paying hockey and stuff but I ended up breaking my elbow. I was going to go to the Youth Olympics for running. Then I said, 'I'll try to do the selection for cycling'. I got in, got a medal there [she won time trial silver] and kind of thought, 'okay, I should keep doing this'."

Her natural ability is obvious but Gillespie - who has a degree in health and performance science from UCD - has also endured her fair share of setbacks. Illness has disrupted her progress over the last two years, and yet she's still had success.

Ahead of the World Track Cycling Championships in Paris @CyclingIreland team member Lara Gillespie on the requirement to be "aerobically fit" and "mentally aware" to succeed in the discipline @UCI_Track #rtesport @GameOn2FM pic.twitter.com/QQOw5pxWg6

Her performance at the recent Rás was a major boost, one which Gillespie hopes gives her the momentum to stay on an upward curve.

"It was class," she said. "We had