BOILARD FIFTH IN JUNIOR WOMEN’S ITT AT ROAD WORLDS

 Innsbruck, Austria (September 24, 2018) – Canada had a strong start to the Road World Championships in Innsbruck, Austria, on Monday, with Canadian national Junior women’s ITT champion Simone Boilard of Quebec City finishing fifth, 6.17 seconds out of the bronze medal. Canada’s other entrant in the race, Magdeleine Vallieres Mill of Sherbrooke, Quebec, did not fare as well, crashing early in the race, but finishing despite what turned out to be a broken thumb.

“Coming to Worlds I didn’t know what to expect,” said Boilard. “I didn’t have a chance to compare myself to the other girls, so I really focused on being my best. Today I was feeling super good. I think I did too many technical mistakes and started way too slow, but I was able to finish really, really strong. I’m happy with fifth place, but I’m sure I can do even better.”

“There was a big tailwind today, and it was going stronger and stronger at the end of the course. I had to keep a very high cadence and it was hard to spin my legs that fast! I’m really confident now going into the road race, because I already know where I could have taken the seven seconds [to bronze] – I’m a little disappointed about those seven seconds – but I’m confident I can be a good contender for the next race.”