As the Olympic Games come to an end, meet the athletes who will be competing in the mountain bike discipline on August 20 and 21st.
Catharine Pendrel
Catharine Pendrel is one of Canada’s most decorated cross-country mountain bikers, with two world titles to her name, plus two overall World Cup titles and 12 World Cup wins. Catharine is also a Pan Am Games and Commonwealth Games champion. The Kamloops, BC based rider is originally from Harvey Station, New Brunswick.
Catharine – known as Kika – began cycling at age 16, following in the footsteps of older brother Geoff, who was a member of the national Downhill mountain bike team. When she moved to the west coast to attend the University of Victoria, Catharine continued cycling, and was first selected to the national team for the world championships in 2004.
Her first significant international success was in 2007, when she won the Pan Am Games gold medal, in Rio de Janerio, no less. In 2008, she was selected to the Canadian team for the Beijing Games and finished fourth, after riding much of the race in the bronze medal position. In the 2012 London Games, Catharine was a disappointing ninth, after going in as one of the favourites.
This was the beginning of a string of successes, with her first World Cup win coming in 2008, in Bromont, Quebec, and her latest two weeks before the Rio Games race, at Mont-Ste-Anne, Quebec. Catharine now holds the record for MSA wins, with four. Catharine won the overall title in the Wold Cup in 2010 and 2012.
The 2011 season saw Catharine take her first world title, in Champery, Switzerland; the first cross-country title by a Canadian woman since Alison Sydor in 1996. In 2014, she took her second title in Hafjell, Norway, coming back from a broken collarbone earlier in the season. 2014 also saw Catharine win the Commonwealth Games gold medal in Glasgow, Scotland, and her second national cyclo-cross title.
“We were here last October for the test event, and we spent a lot of time getting the course dialed in and took lots of video. So on Wednesday (August 17th), we are all going to go out and do a lap together and share our knowledge. We’ve been following the course designer on Twitter and watching all the changes that have happened. I think we are very well prepared and will be able to consolidate our information on Wednesday. So Wednesday will be a big training day, and after that it will be recovery and final race prep.”
“I think it [the race] will be technical to a point, but I think you will see an early selection, particularly if it doesn’t get too hot. It will come down to a smaller group of women, probably after the 30 minute mark, and then eventually blow apart.”
“I think most of us will be on a hardtail, and that is currently my plan, unless there’ve been some big changes we don’t know about. If it rains I’m not sure how that will change the course. I believe they have done enough fortification of it that it won’t change a lot. Cooler weather would be better, but we all have prepared for heat and humidity. But if it is cooler you are going to see faster, harder racing. That’s what I’m hoping for because that’s the way I like it.”
“I think the gold medal favourites are Annika Langvad, Jolanda Neff, Jenny Rissvids and myself. We’ve all won World Cups this year. But there are a lot of women that I feel could medal at this race, and it’s the Olympics, and it doesn’t always come down to what you’ve done already this season. It’s who puts it together on the day, when it matters. That’s part form, part mind, part tactics and a little bit of luck. Hopefully it will be Canada showing the flag on the podium.”
“I feel way more relaxed and confident coming into this Games, even though in 2012 I was riding off of stronger results. 2011 was probably my best season ever and the start of 2012 was strong. I felt a little fatigue [at the 2012 Games]. This year I’ve taken a much more relaxed approach and I know what worked for me in Beijing [4th] was keeping it fun and light. In London I was much more serious and medal-focused; now I’m more performance focused. I think having a good performance can get me a medal, but it’s more about putting together a ride that I’m satisfied with. Maybe that’s a medal, maybe it’s fifth, maybe it’s less than that. But it’s about giving as much as I can on the day.”
Emily Batty
Emily Batty is one of two Canadian riders in the Women’s Mountain Bike race in Rio, racing on Saturday. Emily has long been one of Canada’s top riders, with performances during the last 12 months leading into the Games among the best of her career. She is also one of the most popular riders on the international circuit, with fan clubs in many countries.
Emily started mountain biking at age 10, following her two older brothers into the sport. Her progression through the ranks has been textbook, with national titles and world championship appearances starting as a Junior – seven national titles to date. Internationally, Emily began to make her mark as an Under-23 rider, with wins and top-3 finishes at the World Cup level, and the 2009 Pan-American Championships title.
In 2012 Emily had her first career World Cup podiums, with a second and a fourth, plus finishing sixth overall for the World Cup season. It was a bittersweet season, because she also represented Canada at the London Olympics but broke her collarbone in training before the race. Emily still managed to compete, finishing 24th.
In 2013 she won her first Elite national title, and took her second just last month. In 2014, Emily won the silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, as well as finishing fourth overall in the season-long World Cup series.
2015 was the start of her breakthrough run up to Rio, beginning with her gold medal on Canadian soil at the Pan Am Games, on her home course. She had three World Cup podiums in 2015, and in 2016 reached her first Elite world championship podium, taking the bronze medal in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic. In the final major competition leading into Rio, Emily was third at the Canadian stop on the World Cup, Mont-Ste-Anne.
“What happened at London is something I try not to dwell on too much. I’ve had four years to recover, and it did take some time … a lot longer than most people would imagine. But that last couple of years I’ve had nothing but successes, so I’ve gone full circle with perseverance and resilience, overcoming the biggest obstacle I could ever dream of.”
“I’ve got both options [hardtail and full suspension] here. I raced here in October [at the test event] on the full suspension and I really enjoyed it. Right now I’m planning on the hardtail, but I could resort to the Top Fuel [suspension], depending on how rough the latest changes to the course have made it.”
“Absolutely the last 12 months have been strong. Adam [Morka, husband and coach] and I have been focussing on the process – the traveling, making recovery as important as time on the bike – and that has shown with my form. The bronze medal at the world championships brought a lot of confidence to me. I know my fitness is there and it’s just a matter of bringing it on Saturday.”
Leandre Bouchard
Leandre Bouchard is one of two Canadian men that will represent Canada in Mountain Biking at Rio. Leandre’s rise to Olympic athlete has been dramatic over the last 12 months, since he is still in only his second year as an Elite rider.
Leandre is the tallest member of Canada’s cycling team, and also one of the youngest. He first represented Canada internationally as a Junior, at the 2010 world championships in Quebec, close to his home town of Alma. Leandre is also a member of the unique Cyclone d’Alma cycling team, which is supported by his local region and has supported a number of riders to international prominence.
In 2011 he entered the Under-23 ranks, and won three national titles as a U23 (2011, 2012 and 2014). As a U23 he started to show his international promise, with three top-10 results on the World Cup.
2015 saw Leandre move up to the Elite ranks, and he immediately made a strong impression, finishing second at the national championships and entering his first Elite world championships. He finished 13th in Rio at the test event.
By the end of 2015, Leandre was in the pool of athletes vying for one of two spots for Rio. He distinguished himself in the first World Cup of 2016 by scoring 19th at the opening round – his first top-20 in the Elite category. A second top-20 in the third round locked up the Rio spot for him.
“I’m pretty proud about my first top-20 in Europe. I’m happy about how I am going in only my second year of Elite. It’s true that I am bigger and heavier, but I also have more power, which helped me at the start.”
“It’s been fantastic in Rio so far; I’m really enjoying my Olympic experience with some awesome team mates. We’ve been training on the [Road] time trial course and it’s been very good, with some beautiful views. I feel lucky to be able to ride my bicycle around the city.”
“I think for me, this is a hardtail course. So I will use the Devinci Wooky, it is my weapon of choice. We [the Canadians] are good riders, so we have the skills that are necessary. The weight we save on the climbs will be important. I’m probably going to use some really fast tires for lower rolling resistance; the Maxxis Tread Lite.”
Raphael Gagne
Raphael Gagne – Raph – is one of two Canadian men representing Canada in the Mountain Bike competition at Rio on Sunday, August 21st. Hailing from Quebec City, Raph began mountain biking at the age of nine. In 2003 he won his first national title as a Cadet, and represented Canada internationally one year later as a Junior at the world championships. At that world championships he was part of the Team Relay squad that won the world title.
In 2005 he attended his first Games competition – the Canada Games – winning gold in mountain bike and bronze on the road. He defended that gold medal four years later and was Quebec’s flag bearer. In 2008 Raph added the Under-23 national title to his palmares and finished seventh at the world championships.
He joined the Elite ranks in 2010, representing Canada at the Worlds in Mont-Ste-Anne, less than an hour from his home town, and began to work his way up through the ranks at the pro level. 2014 saw him finish seventh at the Commonwealth Games, but it is in the last 12 months that he has really begun to hit his stride, taking the gold medal at the Pan American Games, and recording top-10 finishes in the World Cup, led by a sixth place in Windham, New York, plus 18th at the world championships – the top non-European finish – and winning the US Cup pro series. He also became national cyclo-cross champion. 2016 saw a strong start to the season, with a 12th place at the opening World Cup, before sinusitis affected his performance in the rest of the spring events. He then turned his focus to preparing for Rio.
At the same time, Raph was busy finishing off a teaching degree in Physical Eduction, with the final course this Fall after the Olympics.
“I first started in sports as a swimmer at age six; my mom did Quebec Summer Games as a swimmer and inspired me when she told me about it. I was a swimmer from six until 18, and at the age of eight, I started triathlon for two years, then I tried mountain biking and I got hooked right away.”
“I did my first national championships in 1999 as a Pee Wee, at Camp Fortune in Gatineau, and I took the title, which was pretty cool. Ever since I saw the world championships in Mont-Ste-Anne in 1998 I dreamed of doing it, and then I made it as a first year Junior in 2004, in Les Gets [France].”
“It’s been a lifelong dream to go to the Olympics. It has been my goal for a long time in cycling and now to make it is really special. Commonwealth Games two years ago, Pan Am Games last year and now the Olympics. Last year was a really good one for me and it set the tone for the Olympic selection.”
“I’m really excited to race this course; I wasn’t able to race the test event [last fall] and I’m thankful for my team mates and coach, who sent me videos and briefed me on what’s coming up. I will ride a hardtail; I’ve been a hardtail guy in the past and I really love my Cannondale FSi. Given all the information I have received, I would say it’s a hardtail course, but I will try both [hardtail and full suspension] in training.”
“I had some health issues earlier, but I’m really happy with my training now and how I was able to push it in July and early August. It’s better to have that setback early in the season. The week on Mont-Ste-Anne [early August] I was still training a lot so it was harder than usual to race well, but I decided to sacrifice MSA in order to be prepared for Rio. I felt that this is what I had to do, to make sure I have no regrets in Rio and be there at my best.”
