News – Page 119 – Cycling Canada Cyclisme

CANADA PULLS OUT OF PAN AM ROAD CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR SECURITY REASONS

(Ottawa, ON – April 15, 2016) Cycling Canada has decided not to send a team to the Pan American Road Championships in San Cristobal, Venezuela, due to security risks. The event is scheduled to take place on May 18 to 22. USA Cycling has also decided not to participate in these Championships, due to security concerns.

The location of the event would necessitate flying into Cucuta, Colombia, and then travelling by ground transportation to San Cristobal. The Government of Canada has issued a regional advisory for that area over concerns of cross-border violence, kidnapping, smuggling and drug trafficking, with foreigners being specifically targeted. A state of emergency is in effect, with an increased military presence.

The non-attendance will have little impact on Olympic qualification. The quota for the men’s road and time trial events has already been announced by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).

“On the women’s side,” according to the High-Performance Director, Jacques Landry, “not participating will have an impact — but not a huge one — if we continue performing on the world stage as we are now with riders such as Leah Kirchmann and Karol-Ann Canuel. As of March 27th we are still ranked ninth among nations, which would grant us three spots in the Road Race at the Games, and we are more than 500 points from falling past the 14th nation; which would give us only two Road Race spots.”

“The impact on World Championship quotas is more significant and could affect the ability to obtain maximum quota spots,” explained Landry. “As an example, there is 250 points up for grabs to win the men’s Road Race. With the new UCI points system, there is even more importance placed in racing and performing at Pan American Championships, as compared to UCI 2.2 category races in North America.”

“However,” continued Landry, “the security of our athletes and staff is paramount and, based on the information and advice we have received, we are not comfortable with sending anyone to these championships. Given this security and safety issue in Venezuela, we will be contacting the UCI to voice our concern and frustration around this event.”

For more information, please visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website (http://travel.gc.ca/destinations/venezuela).

April 15, 2016/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA AND LOUIS GARNEAU LAUNCH 2016 CYCLING TEAM COLLECTION

(Ottawa, ON – April 08, 2016) At the upcoming Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Canadian cycling team uniforms from Louis Garneau Sports will blend cutting-edge technology with a nod to tradition.

This year, Team Canada will continue to sport the traditional light blue jersey with white sleeves and red maple leaves that dates back to the 1960s. This is the same iconic design as the one worn by Hall of Famers Alison Sydor, Jocelyn Lovell, Curt Harnett, Steve Bauer and Gord Singleton. Louis Garneau wore the kit himself in the 1984 Olympic Games and has been the producer of the Canadian National Cycling team kits ever since. The national symbol, the maple leaf, is visible on the rider from every angle, creating a strong visual impact.

The simple design disguises the forward-thinking technology associated with Garneau apparel, encompassing fabric construction, performance features, and moisture management. The 2016 edition will be the fastest and most comfortable Team Canada kit ever made thanks to extensive development work between apparel manufacturer Louis Garneau Sports and the aerodynamic expertise of Alphamantis Technologies. Directly involved at each stage of this collaboration were athletes and staff from Cycling Canada’s high performance programs. Canadian National Team athletes also underwent numerous fit sessions with Garneau to maximize aerodynamic efficiency.

“I could not be more proud of the tremendous development work that has been done with Cycling Canada,” said Founder and President Louis Garneau. “For months we have collaborated relentlessly in order to create the best-performing apparel for our cyclists at the Rio Games. We’ve put all of our expertise at the service of the team, and the result speaks for itself: state-of-the-art apparel that will allow our athletes to compete at the highest level and concentrate on their performance, not on the reliability of their equipment.”

“Cycling Canada is committed to providing our athletes with the best possible tools required to perform at the highest international level,” said Cycling Canada High Performance Director Jacques Landry. “We are proud to work with partners like Garneau who share this commitment and we are grateful for all the research, development and passion that has gone into delivering a world-class product to our world-class athletes.”

For the first time, authorized exact replica versions of the Team Canada jersey will be available for sale at select retailers that carry the Garneau product line at the end of May. A portion of the proceeds of each sale goes back to support the Canadian Olympic Team as well as Cycling Canada’s National Team programs.

ABOUT LOUIS GARNEAU

Louis Garneau Sports, a global company with its head office located in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, QC, is an international leader in the design and manufacture of sports clothing and accessories. The company has over 400 employees and is ever growing. Thanks to the sponsoring of high-profile international athletes and teams, and to the sale of its products in over 40 countries, the company is in constant progress and relentlessly centers its efforts on development and innovation. More than ever, athletes all around the world stand out and perform in outstanding fashion thanks to the Louis Garneau brand. For more information please visit www.louisgarneau.com.

April 8, 2016/by Communications

NATIONAL CYCLING TEAM AND CYCLING CANADA TEAM UP WITH BIKND

(Ottawa, ON – April 04, 2016) Cycling Canada welcomes Biknd as its official supplier of bike travel cases and wheel bags for the National Cycling Team. Biknd, founded in 2009, is based in Chicoutimi, QC, and manufactures and distributes an industry-leading line of protective travel cases for both road and mountain bikes. Its innovative products are known for their unique combination of design with superior function and performance.

“We are thrilled to add another world class, Canadian-based company to our team of partners providing vital support to our programs,” said Cycling Canada High Performance Director Jacques Landry. “Our athletes and staff spend countless days on the road every year. Having a top-of-the-line, protective case for our most important piece of equipment is a necessity that cannot be overlooked.”

Biknd’s Helium Bike Case has already won many design awards as well as honourable mention in various cycling media outlets such as cyclingnews.com and Mountain Bike Action.

“Biknd is proud to become one of the official partners of Cycling Canada by providing peace of mind to the best Canadian athletes during their trips and allowing them to focus on their success,” said Marc-Andre Girard, International Sales Coordinator for Biknd.

In addition to supplying product for use by the National Cycling Team, Biknd will donate 10% of sales proceeds to Cycling Canada from product purchases made by Cycling Canada members. For more information please contact sales@biknd.com.

ABOUT BIKND

Biknd is a privately owned company established in the province of Quebec Canada. Under the initiative of Cycles Devinci, the Biknd brand was born in 2009 to market innovative travel cases. Biknd has multiple international patents and protects bikes in more than 30 countries. We believe that bringing to life progressive ideas enables us to develop products that offer superior function, simplicity, and performance.

April 4, 2016/by Communications

JUNIOR TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS CONCLUDE WITH MORE RECORDS FALLING

(Milton, ON – April 03, 2016) The Canadian Junior Track National Championships concluded on Sunday at the Mattamy Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario, with titles awarded in three final events. National champions donned maple leaf jerseys in four categories – Under-17 Women and Men, and Under-19 (Junior) Women and Men.

The final day of competition opened with the Time Trial events; 500 metres for all categories except Junior Men, who raced 1000 metres. Sarah Van Dam of the Tripleshot team added another title to her collection in the Under-17 women, with a time of 38.232 seconds. Julia Gibson (Ottawa Bicycle Club) took silver and Kassandra Kriarakis (Kallisto-FCV) the bronze.

Riley Pickrell (Tripleshot), another multiple title winner, took the Under-17 Men’s title, setting a new Canadian record of 33.694 seconds. Justin Correa (Kallisto-FCV) won the silver medal and Joel Domingue (Equipe du Quebec) the bronze.

In the Junior Women’s event, Erin Attwell (Tripleshot) took her first title of the championship, beating rival Maggie Coles-Lyster (Tag Cycling) with a Canadian record time of 37.034 seconds. Lauriane Genest (Equipe du Quebec) took the bronze medal.

In the Junior Men’s 1000 metre competition, Sprint champion Stefan Ritter (Team Alberta) set a blazing fast time of 1:04.168 to win the gold medal. Cameron Fitzmaurice (Cycling BC / TaG) took silver and Adam Lefebvre (Kallisto-FCV) bronze.

After a brief break to catch their breath, riders were immediately back on the track for the Scratch Races. Sarah Van Dam was again the winner for the Under-17 women while Dawson MacDonald (NCCH p/b Dec Express) took the Under-17 men’s title with a well-timed breakaway attack. Maggie Coles-Lyster won her fifth title of these championships in the Junior Women’s race while Cameron Fitzmaurice took the Junior men’s championship.

The final event of the Championships was the Keirin, held only for the Junior women and men. Coles-Lyster took an incredible sixth title for the women, beating out Amelia Bell (NCCH p/b Dec Express) and Devaney Collier (Team Alberta). In the Men’s race it, to no one’s surprise, Stefan Ritter powering away from the other five riders to win easily his third title, a clean sweep of the individual Sprint events. Adam Lefebvre (Kallisto-FCV) was second and John Willcox (Cycling BC / TaG) third.

April 3, 2016/by Communications

COLES-LYSTER DOMINATES AT JUNIOR TRACK NATIONALS WITH FOUR TITLES IN TWO DAYS

(Milton, ON – April 02, 2016) Records continued to fall on Day 2 of the Canadian National Junior Track Championships, at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario. Men and Women in the Under-17 and Under-19 (Junior) categories competed across three different events, with a total of 12 national titles awarded on Saturday.

The day began with the Individual Pursuit competition, which is especially critical for the Junior men and women since it will be a major factor in determining selection for the world championship team.

The Under-17 women’s title was taken by Sarah Van Dam, racing for the Victoria-based Tripleshot team, with a time of 2:35.810. Kassandra Kriarakis (Kallisto-FCV) won the silver medal and Julia Gibson (Ottawa Bicycle Club) the bronze.

In the Under-17 men’s competition, all three medallists broke the previous national record. Riley Pickrell (Tripleshot) took the gold medal with a time of 2:21.056, followed by Justin Correa (Kallisto-FCV) and Sydney Flageogle-Bray (NCCH p/b Dec Express).

In the Junior women’s competition Maggie Coles-Lyster (TaG Cycling), a first year Junior rider, won with a time of 2:29.788, just over a second ahead of Erin Attwell (Tripleshot). Laurie Jussaume (Equipe du Quebec) won the bronze medal. All three medallists beat the world championships qualifying time of 2:32.720.

In the Junior men’s Individual Pursuit, Felix Pelletier (Equipe du Quebec) was the champion with a time of 3:27.680, beating John Willcox (Cycling BC / TaG) while Cameron Fitzmaurice (Cycling BC / TaG) won the bronze medal. All three medallists successfully beat the world championships qualifying standard of 3:30.790.

In the second session of the day, attention turned to the Sprint competition and the Points Race. Kaitlyn Rauwerda (NCCH p/b Dec Express) took the Under-17 women’s title in the Points Race with a gutsy solo attack and held off the field for the win. Her teammate, Sydney Flageole-Bray, made a similarly bold move in the Under-17 men’s race, to lap the field and take the gold medal.

The Junior women’s Points Race saw Maggie Coles-Lyster take her second title of the day and third of the championships with a dominating performance that including winning three of six intermediate sprints. The Junior men’s competition started out as a battle between eventual winner Cameron Fitzmaurice and Jordan Jones (NCCH p/b Dec Express) until Jones was forced to retire after a crash that took down six riders in the last third of the race. Jones tried to continue after getting his bike repaired but eventually dropped out.

The day concluded with the Sprint competitions. Sarah Van Dam won the Under-17 women’s title in two straight rides over Kassandra Kriarakis, as did Riley Pickrell over Joel Domingue (Equipe du Quebec) in the Under-17 men. In the Junior women, Maggie Coles-Lyster picked up an incredible fourth national title (third of the day), ahead of Erin Attwell. Stefan Ritter (Team Alberta) repeated as the Junior men’s champion, in two straight rides over Nick Wammes (Kallisto-FCV). In Junior women’s qualifying, the top four riders all broke the national record in the 200-metre time trial, led by Coles-Lyster.

The Junior Track Championships conclude on Sunday, with the Time Trial events, the Scratch, Keirin and Elimination races.

April 2, 2016/by Communications

RECORD TIMES AT JUNIOR TRACK NATIONALS ON DAY 1

(Milton, ON – April 01, 2016) The 2016 Canadian Junior Track Championships got off to a strong start on Friday at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario, with three Canadian records set.

Day 1 of the Junior Nationals saw the team events contested – the Team Sprint and Team Pursuit – for the Under-17 and Under-19 (Junior) categories.

The Team Sprint saw Canadian records set in both the Junior Women’s and Men’s categories. The British Columbia composite squad TaG Tripleshot, consisting of Erin Atwell and Maggie Coles-Lyster broke the existing record in their qualifying ride, and then broke it again in the gold medal final, with a time of 36.339 seconds. Teams of Ontario (Amelia Bell/Charlotte Cresswicke) took silver, with a time that also would have broken the old record. Team Quebec 2 (Laurie Jussaume/Marie Alexandre Lemire) took bronze.

In the Junior Men’s Team Sprint, Teams of Ontario (Adam Lefebvre/Lucas Taylor/Nick Wammes) qualified first and then broke the national record in the final, with a time of 49.268 seconds. Team Quebec (Gabriel Drapeau Zgoralski/Tristan Guillemette/Felix Pelletier) took silver.

In the Under-17 category for Team Sprint, the composite team of Quebec Tripleshot (Simone Boilard/Sarah Van Dam) took gold for the women and the B.C. composite squad TaG Cannondale Tripleshot (Tyler Davies/Ethan Ogrodniczuk/Riley Pickrell) came from behind to win the men’s title in the final half lap.

The Team Pursuit saw only the Under-17 titles contested, with most of the Junior riders opting to forego the event to save their energy for Saturday’s world championship qualification competition in the Individual Pursuit. Teams of Ontario (Elizabeth Archbold/Kassandra Kriarakakis/Kaitlyn Rauwerda/Victoria Slater) took the U17 Women’s title, while the men’s teams of Ontario squad (Giuseppe Carone/Justin Correa/Sydney Flageole-Bray/Dawson MacDonald) broke the existing record in their qualifying heat, and then broke it again in the gold medal final, setting a new standard of 3:25.239 .

Competition continues on Saturday, with the Individual Pursuit, Sprint and Points Races.

April 1, 2016/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA PARTNERS WITH BLADE CARBON WHEELS ON ROAD TO RIO

(Ottawa, ON – March 30, 2016) Cycling Canada welcomes BLADE Carbon Wheels as a supplier of wheels for National Team road projects in 2016 and beyond. A Canadian company based in Barrie, ON, BLADE manufactures and distributes a wide range of hand-built full carbon fibre and carbon alloy wheels for the road and track cycling markets.

BLADE’s 50mm carbon clincher wheels, which received UCI certification in late 2015, will be used by Canada’s National Team program as well as other Cycling Canada road development projects.

“Support from Canadian companies in the cycling industry is crucial to the sustainability of Cycling Canada’s national team programs,” commented Cycling Canada High Performance Director Jacques Landry. “Thanks to the products these companies donate, our athletes and support staff benefit from having access to top-quality equipment and it frees up critical resources that can be better spent in other areas.”

“BLADE Carbon Wheels is excited about our new partnership with the Canadian Cycling Team,” commented Rob Milligan, President of BLADE Carbon Wheels. “As a Canadian company, we are proud of our athletes and look forward to working with them to reach their goals and wish all team members the best for the 2016 cycling season.”

In addition to supplying wheels for use by the National Cycling Team, BLADE has set up an online promotional offer that will raise funds for Cycling Canada. When purchasing a set of BLADE wheels use promo code “Cycling Canada” and receive $50 off your purchase. BLADE will then donate $100 to the national federation for investment in Canadian road cycling programs. Design your custom wheels at http://www.bladecarbonwheels.com/ and help support our athletes.

ABOUT BLADE CARBON WHEELS

BLADE Carbon wheels® are all about you, the customer! We have the most customizable wheels in the industry, allowing you to make your wheels one of a kind. We offer full Carbon Fiber and Carbon Alloy wheels in various depths and widths. All our wheels are hand-built with the highest craftsmanship. We are proud to be a Canadian company and proud to support our Canadian Athletes!

March 30, 2016/by Communications

NEXTGEN MTE PROGRAM EVOLVES INTO TEAM RACECLEAN

(Ottawa, ON – March 29, 2016) Cycling Canada’s men’s track endurance program continues to progress and will compete in 2016 as Team RaceClean.

The NextGen MTE program was launched two years ago with the goal of being medal contenders in the men’s team pursuit at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. The team remains firmly on target to achieve that goal after the 2015-16 track season that included a top-10 World Cup result and a 12th-place finish at the UCI Track World Championships.

The foundation for this success has been in selecting an MTE group that trains and competes together throughout the year. For 2016, the program is stepping up to the next level by bringing together 10 riders to train and compete as a Cycling Canada trade team for the entire season.

The team will race under the banner of Cycling Canada’s RaceClean anti-doping program. The 10 young riders and staff strongly believe in the importance of fair play, clean sport, and the obligation racers have to compete within the rules.

“The objective stays the same: To develop our Track Endurance program to be competitive at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; that’s a given,” said Jacques Landry, Cycling Canada’s High Performance Director. “But along the way, if we can develop a rider to be placed on a World Tour or a Professional Continental trade team, we will be happy to let him go. We are also very happy these 10 young riders will develop and advertise a philosophy close to the heart of our organization.”

The team is kicking off its 2016 campaign with a 10-week road block in Europe, starting with a training camp in the south of Spain before moving to Cycling Canada’s base in Belgium for the competition phase. This is a similar program to other successful team pursuit nations including Australia and Great Britain.

“It was very important for us to create a team to enable our riders to enter more races in Europe especially,” said Cycling Canada’s road development coach, Luc Arseneau. “We now have more than 90 days of racing planned over the next few months. To be honest, it’s been a long-time dream.”

Team RaceClean, along with director Arseneau and physiologist Emily Wood will start the season on April 3, racing the Inter-Club Scheldeprijs. After this season opener, they will stay in Europe to attend the UCI Nations Cups, followed by a string of stage races. Team RaceClean will then travel to Canada to make its first appearance on Canadian soil, the Grand Prix Cycliste de Saguenay (UCI 2.2).

After some rest and racing the Global Relay Canadian Championships, Team RaceClean will head back to Europe for some high level Belgium races such as the Tour de Liège and the Tour de Namur. Depending on the development of the new UCI Track Calendar, further races will be announced on the team’s calendar.

This program would not be possible without funding and support from the private sector.

“On the equipment side, the team will be well equipped with Canadian made Aquila bikes, RealSpeed wheels, Shimano components, as well as Pioneer power meters,” said Cycling Canada NextGen MTE coach Ian Melvin. “Louis Garneau will ensure the team’s clothing is as fast and aerodynamic as possible. Private donations were made to the program to complete the budget. Several Toronto-based attendee’s at the 2015 Tour de Bleu created an Aeroplan Beyond Miles account and donated points to enable us to save a significant amount of money on flights. Many people are backing this program, and we thank everyone for their support.”

TEAM RACECLEAN

Willem BOERSMA – Portage La Prairie, Manitoba
Evan BURTNIK – Edmonton, Alberta
Aidan CAVES – Vancouver, British Columbia
Alexander COWAN – Calgary, Alberta
William ELLIOTT – Barrie, Ontario
Adam JAMIESON – Barrie, Ontario
Jay LAMOUREUX – Victoria, British Columbia
Sean MACKINNON – Hamilton, Ontario
Bayley SIMPSON – Lindsay, Ontario
Edward WALSH – Halifax, Nova Scotia

Luc ARSENEAU – National Road Development Coach
Ian MELVIN – NextGen MTE Coach
Emily WOOD – Physiologist

SPONSORS

Aquila Bikes
Louis Garneau
Pioneer Cyclesports Power Meters
Real Speed Cycling wheels
Shimano

SPRING PROGRAM

Scheldeprijs, BEL – 1.IC
Tour of Flanders, BEL – 1.NCup
ZLM Tour, NED – 2.NCup
GP Affligem, BEL – 1.IC
Eschborn-Frankfurt, GER – 1.2U
Flèche du Sud, LUX – 2.2
Paris-Arras, FRA – 2.2
Tour de la Manche, FRA – 2.Nat
Grand Prix Cycliste de Saguenay, CAN – 2.2

March 29, 2016/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA PLANNING SURVEY

Cycling Canada invites participants in the sport to provide their input to the development of the plan for the 2017 – 2020 quadrennial.

The survey can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CC2016EngSurvey

and will take 10-15 minutes to complete.

This is your opportunity to contribute to the plan that will guide the national body for the next four years.

Those that complete the survey will be entered into a draw for Hop On! gear.

March 29, 2016/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE FOR 2016 GLOBAL RELAY CANADIAN ROAD CYCLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

(Ottawa, ON – March 23, 2016) Ottawa, ON, and Gatineau, QC, will play host to Canada’s top road cyclists this summer as the National Capital region welcomes the 2016 Global Relay Canadian Road Cycling Championships from June 25th to 29th.

Action will kick off in Ottawa with the Road Race events on Saturday, June 25th and Sunday, June 26th. Starting and finishing in Tunney’s Pasture just west of the downtown core, the road races will feature a spectator-friendly 10.3km circuit along the scenic Ottawa River Parkway.

Racing will move to Gatineau on Tuesday, June 28th for the Time Trial events which will take the riders up and down a challenging and undulating course through Gatineau Park.

The Championships will conclude with the Criterium events in historic downtown Aylmer, Quebec, on Wednesday, June 29th. The six-corner course will feature an uphill sprint to the finish line situated in front of the famed British Hotel and in close proximity to numerous restaurants, bars and cafes.

EVENT SCHEDULE

Saturday, June 25 – Junior Women, Junior Men, Para and Elite Women’s road races
Sunday, June 26 – Elite men’s road race
Tuesday, June 28 – Junior Women, Junior Men, Para, Elite Women, Elite Men’s individual time trial
Wednesday, June 29 – Junior Women, Junior Men, Elite Women, Elite Men’s Criterium

In addition to racing, the road and criterium events will feature a variety of activities and attractions for spectators, family members and the local cycling and corporate communities. Details on this will be available on the event website within the next few weeks.

Event technical guides and registration information will be available in early May. For more information, including race distances please visit Cycling Canada’s website (https://cyclingcanada.ca/sport/para-cycling/events/type-of-event/canadian-championships/2016-global-relay-canadian-road-championships-eliteparajr/).

March 23, 2016/by Communications