"I owe cycling a proper goodbye": Irish cyclist convinced judge to delay 16-month jail sentence so he could ride Gran Fondo World Championships

A cyclist in Ireland, who was jailed for 16 months over the assault and harassment of a former colleague, convinced a court to delay his prison sentence so that he could compete at the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships.

Cahir O'Higgins, a former solicitor, was sentenced in July for assault causing harm and harassing his former colleague Stephen O'Mahony. However, in a bizarre turn of events first reported by Sticky Bottle, O'Higgins successfully asked the judge to delay his sentence so he could "wear the Irish colours with pride" and give "the sport of cycling a proper goodbye".

The judge allowed the request and O'Higgins finished 131st in the 45-49 age category road race in Denmark before being jailed on his return.

It all came to light after reporting restrictions were lifted on Friday when O'Higgins was, in a separate case, convicted of the theft of €400 from a client he was representing back in 2016 and four related counts of perverting the course of justice.

The media had been limited in the details it could report until Friday, but now the circumstances around O'Higgins' sentencing can be revealed, the former solicitor having pleaded guilty to one count of harassing Mr O'Mahony between 25 June 2020 and 11 February 2021, as well as one charge of assault causing harm for breaking his nose.

When jailed for 16 months on 22 July by Judge Kenneth Connolly, O'Higgins reportedly made a request to address the court and asked the judge for his sentence to be delayed until after September's UCI Gran Fondo World Championships in Aalborg, Denmark.

 

 

 

 

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While the delay was not purely to pursue his spot at the event, and was also so he could settle affairs and shut down his solicitor's practice, RTÉ described the "extraordinary scenes" in court as he made his case.

"I think I owe the sport of cycling a proper goodbye," he said to the judge. "I should wear the Irish colours with pride."

The request was granted by the court despite the prosecution's objection and O'Higgins completed the 45-49 age category road race in 131st place, returning to Ireland afterwards and beginning his prison sentence. 

In Dublin on Friday he was convicted of separate theft and perverting the course of justice charges, a separate case to what he was jailed for in July and the reason why reporting restrictions were in place. 

In another completely separate legal issue, O'Higgins was also convicted of a public order offence relating to an incident involving two plain-clothes gardaí as he cycled near the court.