News – Page 122 – Cycling Canada Cyclisme

ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL TRACK CYCLING WORLD CUP COMES TO AN END

Canadian athletes comes back home with medals around their neck

(Hong Kong, CHN – January 17, 2016) Team Canada ended the third and final UCI World Cup of the season with two medals – gold for the women’s team pursuit squad and silver for Hugo Barrette in the men’s keirin.

In addition to the two World Cup medals, Jasmin Glaesser took the silver medal in the C1 Points race.

Canada made history on Saturday with the Women’s Team Sprint securing its best result ever – a fourth place in the event, which will improve its chances to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Kate O’Brien cracked the Top 10 for the first time on the World Cup during the women’s sprint event, advancing to the 1/8 final repechage.

Cycling Canada’s High Performance Director Jacques Landry is thrilled with the outcome of this World Cup in Hong Kong. “Another great weekend for our track program at the last world cup of the season. Thanks to our athlete pool, coaches, facility in Milton and our support staff, our performances are repeatable and in some cases improved. The weekend performances bode really well as our teams will travel back home to turn their focus on preparation for the penultimate targeted event of the year, the world championships in London GBR, in March.”

On Sunday, Allison Beveridge battled through an injury sustained the day before during the scratch race and completed the omnium in ninth place. Beveridge had won this event at the previous world cup in New Zealand.

“I woke up not feeling too great in my shoulder,” said Beveridge who was involved in a crash on Saturday night during the elimination race. “Basically the objective this weekend was to race the best I could, tactically as well as technically. I tried to make the most of it but stay safe out there. Standing starts were really bad and it was getting worse throughout the day. I’m just looking forward to getting home and recovering.”

The next international race for the Canadian track cycling team will be the 2016 UCI World Championships, the final Rio 2016 Olympic qualifying event. The event takes place in London, GBR.

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WORLD CUP GOLD FOR WOMEN’S TEAM PURSUIT, SILVER FOR BARRETTE

Hugo Barrette sprints his way to career-first World Cup Medal

(Hong Kong, CHN – January 16, 2016) It was another brilliant day for the Canadian track cyclists competing at the UCI Track World Cup in Hong Kong, China, as Canada earned two medals.

Canada’s Women’s Team Pursuit squad, ranked #1 in the World Cup standings entering this final World Cup of the season, took the gold medal to secure the coveted White Jersey as World Cup Champions.

The team faced off against the United States in the first round and won the race by over three seconds. In the gold medal race versus the defending Olympic Champions Great Britain, Canada rode away to its second victory in three races thus far this season.

All six of Canada’s team pursuit athletes had the chance to compete throughout the three rounds of racing. In the gold medal race, Team Canada was represented by Jasmin Glaesser, Stephanie Roorda, Laura Brown and Georgia Simmerling.

“We accomplished what we came here for, which was to get on the podium and try our riders in different positions in the lineup to develop them for different roles in the future. To get the win and the World Cup overall was a bonus. It was a great collective effort from the riders and bodes very well for the future,” said Craig Griffin, Canada’s women endurance coach.

Canada also won the World Cup title in 2014.

In the men’s keirin, Hugo Barrette raced his way to the silver medal, taking his career-first World Cup medal. For Barrette, the feat is remarkable considering he suffered multiple injuries in October as a result of a devastating crash in training. The result today has a significant importance in his chances to qualify Canada in the men’s sprint events for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Barrette won both of his first two rounds to advance to the gold medal race.

“I wanted to make a comeback for the World Championships. Erin designed a plan to get me back on the track and meet that goal. I expected to be in this kind of shape in time for the Worlds, but it happened sooner. This is a good outlook for the future,” said Barrette, moments after his silver medal performance. “A big thank you to Erin [Hartwell] – he planned everything to bring me back at full strength. I believed in myself but most importantly, he believed in me, and this is a testament of how good he is as a coach.”

The Canadian Women’s Team Sprint squad was also racing for a medal tonight, facing Spain in the bronze medal ride. Canada lost its race and finished in fourth place. Monique Sullivan and Kate O’Brien also raced in the individual sprint event, and both Sullivan and O’Brien qualified for the second round.

Unfortunately, the two faced each other in the opening round, and it was O’Brien who won the all-Canadian duel to advance to the second round. O’Brien lost her race and moved to the repêchage where she was ultimately eliminated. Ultimately O’Brien took the 10th spot in the standings – her career best result in the individual event.

The event wraps up on Sunday with the completion of the omnium as well as the women’s keirin and the men’s sprint.

For results, visit Tissot Timing: http://tissottiming.com/Sport?sport=ct&year=2016

For video, see the UCI YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/ucichannel

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SULLIVAN & O’BRIEN QUALIFY FOR MEDAL ROUND AT HONG KONG WORLD CUP

Jasmin Glaesser takes silver in C1 Points race

(Hong Kong, CHN – January 15, 2016) Canada’s women’s team sprint duo is fast. And they proved it on Friday, kicking off the Hong Kong leg of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup with a fourth place finish in the qualifying round of the women’s team sprint, Canada’s best ever result in the event.

The Calgary-based pair of Monique Sullivan and Kate O’Brien posted the fourth fastest qualifying time of 33.620s. The duo will race for the bronze medal on Saturday against the Spanish team who qualified in third. The opportunity is there for the women to fine-tune their strategy going into the medal round and post an even faster time in the finale.

“The girls have worked extremely hard to get to this point and I could not be more proud of their focus, fortitude, and grace under pressure in a must-do situation. Our objective for the past year has been to chip away at the points we needed to break into the top nine teams that will qualify for the Olympics,” said Erin Hartwell, Canada’s track sprint coach.

“Today put us into the driver’s seat and one step closer to getting both Monique and Kate to Rio. It’s wonderful to be racing for a medal tomorrow as we’ve qualified into the top four for the first time. However, regardless of immediate success, we will forge on with the mindset and process-driven approach that has brought us to this position. Under no circumstance will we let our collective guard down in our grind to the Games. Nevertheless, I’ll admit I’m somewhat happy today…”

The Canadian women, who won gold in this event at the 2015 PanAm Games, could make history on Saturday. Canada’s women team sprint has never before won a World Cup or a World Championships medal.

In the Class 1 women’s points race, Jasmin Glaesser of Coquitlam, BC, managed to grab the silver medal by scoring 13 points in eight sprints throughout the 20km race.

The Canadian Women’s team pursuit squad, currently ranked #1 in the World Cup standings, posted the third fastest time in their qualifying round. The race marked the World Cup debut for former alpine skier Georgia Simmerling and she exceeded expectations. Canada will face the United States in the first round of the finals.

“We are assessing our athletes here in different roles within the lineup, so the result is less important than how each individual athlete performs, explains Kris Westwood, High Performance Manager for Cycling Canada. “That means in some cases the athletes are being put into unfamiliar roles, and the final result may be compromised, but in the long term it will help us perform better at the World Championships in London and in Rio.”

The Women’s Team Pursuit and Women’s Team Sprint medal rounds will take place Saturday.

In other events, the men’s team pursuit squad finished 13th in qualifying, continuing to gain experience and develop towards Tokyo 2020. The team experienced difficulties at the start, and had a hard time recovering. The four-man team is hoping to remain in contention for World Championships qualification. Sean MacKinnon and Aidan Caves also competed in the points and scratch races, respectively.

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TRACK CYCLING WORLD CUP FINALS TAKE PLACE THIS WEEKEND IN HONG KONG

Canada’s cyclists ready to improve their Olympic rankings

(Hong Kong, CHN – January 14, 2016) As Olympic track cycling qualification enters its final phase, 14 Canadian athletes have made the long trip to Hong Kong for the final World Cup of the 2015-2016 season.

Olympic qualification is based on points earned at continental championships, world cups and world championships over the last two seasons, and Canada is getting a better picture of its chances of getting a spot in Rio in each of the track events.

The women’s Team Pursuit squad is sitting in the strongest position. The Canadian women are leading the World Cup standings going into this event, and taking a second World Cup title (they also won in 2014) would be a big confidence boost going into the world championships in London, GBR, at the beginning of March.

In the women’s Omnium, Canada is also likely to qualify despite missing the entire 2014-15 World Cup season after the retirement of Gillian Carleton. Allison Beveridge won the second round of the World Cup in New Zealand in December, and will represent Canada again in Hong Kong.

Also looking good is the women’s Team Sprint team of Monique Sullivan and Kate O’Brien. The pair have been steadily advancing up the rankings and a strong performance in Hong Kong would put them in the frame for an Olympic spot, earning Canada two individual start positions in both the Keirin and the Sprint at the same time.

On the men’s side, despite a strong performance in New Zealand it was mathematically impossible for the Team Sprint program to qualify for Rio, so the decision was made to not bring the whole team to Hong Kong and allow Hugo Barrette to focus on qualifying as an individual in the Keirin and Sprint events.

The men’s Team Pursuit program has also been making big strides. While Olympic qualification this year is very unlikely, this program is focused on the 2020 Games in Tokyo and the team’s performances over the last season are on the right track for a possible podium spot in four years’ time. A good performance in Hong Kong would be another block in the foundation of our future Olympic medal chances.

Finally, Rémi Pelletier-Roy has a strong shot at an Olympic berth in the men’s Omnium, despite missing the opening round due to a broken collarbone, and racing in the New Zealand event with fitness that was compromised as a result. A good finish in Hong Kong will get Rémi into the World Championships, the final points-scoring opportunity for Olympic qualification.

The Hong Kong event also marks the début for two new members of the Canadian World Cup team.

Two-time winter Olympian Georgia Simmerling has made the transition from Ski-Cross to cycling and quickly worked her way into the women’s Team Pursuit lineup.

And Jay Lamoureux joins the men’s Team Pursuit program for the first time. Jay came to the national coach’s attention at the Canadian Track Championships at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre last October, and has since shown his ability at training camps with the team.

“This final leg of the World Cup season is an opportunity for some of our athletes and teams to solidify chances for Olympic berth, and for others it is an occasion to gain valuable experience as sights are turned to the next quadrennial,” said Cycling Canada High Performance Director Jacques Landry. “As this is a last world cup of the season we’ve taken this opportunity to slot in some new faces in events where we have started building depth. I am very enthused to see how much we’ve grown over the years and the team representing Canada in Hong Kong is a testament to that.”

Racing in Hong Kong runs from Friday, Jan. 15, to Sunday, Jan. 17.

For results, visit Tissot Timing: http://tissottiming.com/Sport?sport=ct&year=2016

For video, see the UCI YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/ucichannel

Team Canada at the Hong Kong Track Cycling World Cup - January 2016

TEAM CANADA – UCI TRACK CYCLING WORLD CUP (HONG KONG, CHN)

  • Remi PELLETIER-ROY (Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, QC) (Men’s Team Pursuit, Omnium)
  • Jay LAMOUREUX (Victoria, BC) (Men’s Team Pursuit)
  • Aidan CAVES (Vancouver, BC) (Men’s Team Pursuit, Scratch Race)
  • Sean MACKINNON (Hamilton, ON) (Men’s Team Pursuit, Points Race)
  • Adam JAMIESON (Barrie, ON) (Men’s Team Pursuit)
  • Hugo BARRETTE (Cap-aux-Meules, QC) (Keirin, Sprint)
  • Monique SULLIVAN (Calgary, AB) (Women’s Team Sprint, Keirin, Sprint)
  • Kate O’BRIEN (Calgary, AB) (Women’s Team Sprint, Sprint)
  • Allison BEVERIDGE (Calgary, AB) (Women’s Team Pursuit, Omnium)
  • Stephanie ROORDA (Vancouver, BC) (Women’s Team Pursuit)
  • Jasmin GLAESSER (Coquitlam, BC) (Women’s Team Pursuit, Points Race)
  • Georgia SIMMERLING (Vancouver, BC) (Women’s Team Pursuit)
  • Laura BROWN (Vancouver, BC) (Women’s Team Pursuit)
  • Annie FOREMAN-MACKEY (Kingston, ON) (Women’s Team Pursuit)
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INAUGURAL CANADIAN CHRISTMAS CYCLO-CROSS PROJECT A SUCCESS

Canada announces 2016 Worlds team

(Ottawa, ON – January 12, 2016) This past December, seven riders from across Canada took part in an inaugural Christmas Cyclo-Cross project in Belgium.

This project encompassed six races over a 10-day period during the Belgian “Kerste-Period” of Cyclo-Cross.

“We accomplished what we set out to do,” said Program Manager Scott Kelly. “Our elite riders posted some great results against tough international competition and there was visible learning and improvement taking place with our U23 and Junior athletes.”

This project fulfills a commitment by Cycling Canada to introduce developing Cyclo-cross athletes to international competition and to provide continued support to Elite athletes at select international races.

Building upon the success of this project, Cycling Canada is proud to announce the team for the 2016 Cyclo-Cross World Championships. Thirteen riders will travel to Europe to contest both the World Cup in Hoogerheide. Netherlands and the World Championships in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. This number represents the largest amount of athletes Canada has sent to the World Championships since the 2013 race in Kentucky.

TEAM CANADA – 2016 CYCLO-CROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – HEUSDEN-ZOLDER, BELGIUM

Elite Women

  • Mical DYCK* (Victoria, BC)

Elite Men

  • Jeremy MARTIN (Boischatel, QC)
  • Cameron JETTE (Toronto, ON)
  • Mark MCCONNELL (Calgary, AB)
  • Michael VAN DEN HAM (Edmonton, AB)
  • Aaron SCHOOLER (Edmonton, AB)

U23 Women

  • Ruby WEST* (Dundas, ON)
  • Maggie COLES-LYSTER (Maple Ridge, BC)

U23 Men

  • Isaac NILES (Calgary, AB)
  • Trevor O’DONNELL (Barrie, ON)

Junior Men

  • Gunnar HOLMGREN (Orillia, ON)
  • Brody SANDERSON (Orillia, ON)
  • Quinton DISERA* (Horseshoe Valley, ON)

 *denotes current Canadian champion

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CALGARY’S ALLISON BEVERIDGE CLAIMS WORLD CUP GOLD

Beveridge scores big in Points race to take top spot in omnium; Monique Sullivan wins bronze medal in keirin

(Cambridge, NZE – December 06, 2015) Canada added two medals on the third and last day of competition at the UCI Track World Cup in Cambridge, New Zealand. A pair of Calgary track cyclists stepped up, with Allison Beveridge winning her first individual World Cup race, in the omnium event, while Monique Sullivan raced her way to the bronze medal in the women’s keirin, winning her first World Cup medal.

Sitting in fourth place in the omnium ranking after the first day of competition, Beveridge started her second day with a third place in the time trial and posted the fastest time in the flying lap to put herself in second place in the overall ranking before the final Points Race of the omnium competition.

In the ultimate race of the two-day event, Beveridge won four intermediate sprints and added three more points for a total of 23 points for a cumulative total of 201 points, putting her atop the standings and taking the gold medal. She edged reigning World Champion Annette Edmondson of Australia, who finished with 188 points, and Jolien D’Hoore of Belgium with 182 points.

This first individual World Cup victory for Beveridge, who also won a silver medal on Saturday in the Women’s Team Pursuit, comes in her second only World Cup start in the grueling, two-day event. Beveridge has been on multiple World Cup and World Championships podiums throughout her career. This women’s omnium gold medal is the first since 2011 when Tara Whitten won the gold at the World Cup in Beijing.

“This is only my second World Cup Omnium,” said Beveridge to Canadian Cyclist.  “I rode one a couple of years ago but I’ve not ridden one for a while, so I didn’t know what to expect.”

When asked about her focus leading to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Beveridge’s answer is straightforward: “Definitely my focus is the Team Pursuit. We have a really strong team, and we are trying to put it together over the next eight months. It’s our total focus. We are really coming together, and so we are pushing it and want to let people know that we are knocking on the door for Rio.”

The victory for Beveridge catapults her to the fourth place of the UCI World Cup rankings.

In the women’s keirin, Monique Sullivan, also from Calgary, finished in second place in the opening round, advancing to the semi-finals, avoiding the repechage. With the top 3 advancing to the finals, Sullivan crossed the line in second place for her berth in the medal race.

In the medal race, Sullivan ended up in fourth place, but third-place finisher Hyejin Lee of Korea was relegated, bumping Sullivan to third place.

The medal marks the career first World Cup medal for Sullivan.

“Thank you to all of you for believing in me and supporting me and sticking with me! Last night I won my very first World Cup medal with a bronze in the Keirin! This has been such a long time coming and I feel very grateful to continue to have these opportunities to be doing what I love, especially with so much sadness around the world. I have been thinking about the quote ‘You cannot cure the world of sadness but you can choose to live in joy’ and I guess sometimes that’s all we can really do.”

Jacques Landry, Cycling Canada’s head coach and Director of High Performance, reflects on the performance of the Canadians in New Zealand: “From a performance and program progression standpoint, this World Cup in New Zealand has been our best one ever. Not only did we step on the podium three times this past weekend, but we are also improving our performances against benchmarked countries in the team sprint events and the men’s team pursuit. What is encouraging is that these noted improvements come on the back of having Remi [Pelletier-Roy] and Hugo [Barrette] still not 100% fit due to still coming back from their respective recent injuries, and without Sean Mackinnon in the men’s team pursuit line-up who stayed home due to illness. I’m happy with the overall team’s performances despite the recent minor setbacks from injuries.”

The ultimate UCI Track World Cup event will be January 15-17 in Hong Kong.

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SILVER MEDAL FOR CANADIANS AT UCI TRACK WORLD CUP IN NEW ZEALAND

Canada narrowly loses the gold medal by just 0.054s, remains World Cup Leaders

(Ottawa, ON – December 05, 2015) The Canadians won the silver medal in the women team pursuit at the 2016 UCI Track Cycling in Cambridge, New Zealand, involved in an intense dual with the 2015 World Champions from Australia for the top podium spot.

The Canadian team, represented by Jasmin Glaesser, Kirsti Lay, Stephanie Roorda and Annie Foreman-Mackey, easily won its first-round dual against their southern neighbours, taking the CAN-USA showdown by six seconds to advance to the ultimate race.

Facing the Australians in the gold medal round, the opponents took the early lead, but not far behind followed the Canadians, who shuffled their roster by replacing Roorda and Foreman-Mackay with Laura Brown and Allison Beveridge. At the second split, Canada had come back to lead with a slight margin. But the Australians, the reigning World Champions in the event, bounced back and took control of the race in the last two kilometers to take the gold medal.

The dual was extremely tight between the two rivals. Australia won with a time of 4:18.213, while Canadians crossed the finish line at 4:18.267, just 0.054s behind.

Canada remains the UCI World Cup Leaders in the women team pursuit entering the last UCI Track World Cup slated for January 15-17 in Hong Kong.

Allison Beveridge, who raced the gold medal round in the Women Team Pursuit, was also in action in the women’s omnium. She finished third in the scratch race, fourth in the individual pursuit, and fifth in the elimination race. At the halfway mark of the six-race event, Beveridge is sitting fourth in the overall standings. Remi Pelletier-Roy sits in 16th position of the men’s omnium after three races.

In the sprint events, Kate O’Brien posted her career World Cup result with a 13th place, immediately followed by teammate Monique Sullivan in 14th. Both Canadians advanced the first round, but lost their opening dual.

Notably for O’Brien, the result is quite remarkable as this race was only her second World Cup race in the individual sprint, improving her result from 25th in Cali to 13th in New Zealand. The former bobsledder posted a personal best of 11.025s in the 200m qualifiers, lowering her best mark by 0.002s previously set at the Pan-American Games in Toronto. This was her World Cup debut in the first round, facing an opponent.

The men raced the keirin, and Hugo Barrette took 13th place.

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CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES “ROAD TO RIO” FUNDRAISING GALA

Fundraiser at Bear Mountain Resort to support Canada’s mountain bike athletes

(Ottawa, ON – December 4, 2015) Cycling Canada invites you to come to Victoria, British Columbia to join our country’s top mountain bike athletes on March 5th for a fundraising gala at Bear Mountain Resort, home for Canada’s mountain bike team.

The gala will be held at the Westin Bear Mountain Golf Resort and Spa. ECOASIS, owners of Bear Mountain Resort, and Cycling Canada announced their partnership in January 2015 designating Bear Mountain Resort as the Official High Performance Training Centre.

The inaugural “Road to Rio” fundraising event will feature a gourmet dinner, live and silent auctions and exclusive opportunities to engage and interact with Canada’s national team and development level mountain bike athletes who will be in attendance. Coinciding with the fundraising gala, Bear Mountain Resort is proud to host their first officially sanctioned Canada Cup mountain bike race that will welcome seasoned and medaled athletes along with those competing for a break out year.

Canada’s top mountain bike riders, including Rio-bound Catharine Pendrel, have been training regularly at Bear Mountain Resort this fall and winter. The Resort, which uniquely offers year-round training opportunities on Canadian soil, is playing a key part in Cycling Canada’s long-term athlete development plans.

“I’d like to invite everyone to come and celebrate mountain biking with me and Canada’s best mountain bikers at our Road to Rio Fundraiser at Bear Mountain Resort on March 5th,” said Pendrel, two-time UCI World Champion and two-time Canadian Olympian. “This is a great opportunity to meet and support your Olympians and future Olympians as they kick off their 2016 season.”

Proceeds from the event will be invested in Cycling Canada’s National Mountain Bike Team program, both at the elite level as well as Junior and Under 23. All contributions will directly benefit Canada’s athletes in their pursuit of the podium in 2016 while also supporting the next generation of champions targeting 2020 and beyond. A portion of the event proceeds will also be invested in local development programming through Cycling BC.

For tickets and additional information please visit https://hoponcanada.ca/product-category/road-to-rio/ or contact Matthew Jeffries (matthew.jeffries@cyclingcanada.ca).

  • WHAT: Cycling Canada “Road to Rio” Fundraising Gala

  • WHERE: The Westin Bear Mountain Resort, Victoria, BC

  • WHEN: Saturday, March 5th — 6:00pm to 10:00pm

  • WHO: Canada’s National Mountain Bike Team

  • TICKETS: $250 per ticket or $1,800 per table (tax receipts available for allowable portion)

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TWO CANADIAN RECORDS FALL AT UCI TRACK WORLD CUP IN NEW ZEALAND

Women Team Sprint, Men Team Sprint and Men Team Pursuit post career-best results, Women Team Pursuit qualifies with the fastest time

(Cambridge, NZE – December 04, 2015) It was an amazingly fast Friday for the Canadian track cycling team with two Canadian records broken in New Zealand as the UCI World Cup resumed at the Avantidrome in Cambridge.

Canada’s athletes posted season-best results across the board. The Women’s Team Sprint squad, who are fighting a tight battle for an Olympic spot, rose to the occasion and posted a career-best time at 33.467s, qualifying in fifth place and shattering the Canadian record in the process. The previous Canadian mark was set at 34.173s during the 2014 Pan-American Championships. The Calgary duo of Monique Sullivan and Kate O’Brien scored very important Olympic qualifying points, which will improve their international ranking.

On the men’s side in the team sprint, the return of Hugo Barrette greatly elevated the team’s performance. Barrette posted the sixth fastest time in the final lap to bring Canada home in ninth position. The team comprised of Joe Veloce, Evan Carey and Barrette stopped the clock at 44.393s, their best time so far this season.

“This was a huge first day for Canadian sprinters here at the World Cup in Cambridge. Monique Sullivan and Kate O’Brien took a career-best fifth place in the women’s team sprint, just one spot shy of qualifying for the medal round, and set a new national record,” said Erin Hartwell, Canada’s sprint coach. “The men came through incredibly well too, with a killer ninth place, the season’s best result by far and just a few hundredths out of eighth place! I’m really impressed with Hugo’s comeback after his terrible crash in Cali, and Joseph and Evan stepped up with solid efforts. The team sprint goals were top eight for the women and top 10 for the guys. Well, they got it done! Proud of the effort the past month to right the ship after the Cali World Cup.”

The Canadian Women Team Pursuit squad, led by Coach Craig Griffin, also elevated their performance by posting the fastest qualifying time among the group of 16 countries. Wearing the coveted White Jersey as UCI World Cup leaders, the four-woman team comprised of Allison Beveridge, Laura Brown, Jasmin Glaesser and Kirsti Lay ripped through the 4-km distance with a time of 4:19.359, lowering their times from the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am Games gold medal performance. The qualifying time was almost two seconds faster from the qualifying time at the opening World Cup of the current season in Colombia.

The Men Team Pursuit were also in action, and the group of four posted a career-best time of 4:04.927 to finish in ninth position, also setting a new Canadian record in the event. The team comprised of Remi Pelletier-Roy, Ed Veal, Adam Jamieson and Aidan Caves cracked the World Cup Top 10 for the first time, showing significant improvements since the program was initiated a few years ago under the guidance of Coach Ian Melvin.

Canada will race for a medal in the Women Team Pursuit on Saturday.

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HUGO BARRETTE: THE LION READY TO ROAR

(Ottawa, ON – December 02, 2015)  Hugo Barrette, Canadian track cycling sprint specialist, will return to competition this week. This return has come about like a magic trick, a miracle of sorts.

The 24-year-old, who made his major international debut during the Pan American Games in Toronto this past July winning three medals, including two gold, suffered serious injuries on October 27 as a result of a crash in training while preparing for the opening World Cup of the season in Cali, Colombia.

“I was on my second effort of the day on the track and decided to open it up, making my first 100% effort. I took the bank, very tight in Cali, much faster than what I thought, and coming out with the slingshot effect I lost control. So I tried to climb the track to slow me down but I was going too fast,” remembers Barrette.

Barrette collided with the safety wall at a speed of about 70 km/h. The result: two broken lumbar vertebrae, a broken nose, split lip, concussion, neck dislocation and severe contusions throughout his entire body.

“After two weeks of lying in a hospital bed in Cali I started training at very low intensity, remaining careful and vigilant,” says Barrette. “But I soon realized that I was recovering quickly from the accident. Then just a week later I was back on the track.”

Since, Barrette has undertaken a modified training program that will allow him to return to the World Cup with the hopes of qualifying for the Olympics, which are fast approaching in August 2016.

This return to training, albeit at low intensity, is the starting point of a second life for Barrette. With the guidance of his coach, Olympic medalist Erin Hartwell, Barrette will take the necessary time to return to full fitness and return to racing at his full potential. And this potential could lead him one day to an Olympic medal.

“As far as the training program goes, I go day by day. Some days I feel almost back to full potential, and other days, it’s not there. It is in these moments that I apply the experience I have gained over the last few years to decide what I should do.”

In his early return to training, Barrette deployed efforts at 80-90%, so it’s difficult to determine where he now sits with regards to fitness. Last week, in the 200m, he came very close to the time he posted before the crash.

Barrette was introduced to the world stage at the 2009 World Championships when he was only 19 years old. A developing hockey player in the Magdalen Islands until the age of 16, he initially started riding as a means to get fit for hockey. Not long after his first session on two wheels he was hooked on the sport of cycling.

Since then he has honed his craft at velodromes in Los Angeles, at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle, Switzerland, and, since its opening in January 2015, at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario.

In 2014, he achieved his first breakthrough international result, finishing eighth in the keirin at the UCI World Cup Guadalajara. This result, among others, propelled him into twelfth place on the world ranking list in the discipline where he sits right now, which places him in a good position for potential Olympic selection.

He is determined to be in Rio in August 2016. “It’s kind of a headache now [for the Olympic qualifications] because I could easily go back to the same shape I was before the crash with two months free of competitions. But we are in the middle of the season, so I have to race despite the crash – which I think is an interesting challenge. I have to go with it one race at a time.”

“I remain positive with the situation. I feel that my body is ready to return to action. Realistically, I do not think I’ll be at the peak of my performance by the third World Cup. But I do not think my injuries will cause negative effects for the Olympics. Rather, it motivates me to push myself beyond where I was, and this will help me in the future, no doubt.”

The second of three World Cups of the season begins December 4 in New Zealand, and the lion is ready to roar.

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