News – Page 149 – Cycling Canada Cyclisme

CANADA TO FIELD NATIONAL TEAMS FOR GRANDS PRIX CYCLISTES DE QUÉBEC ET MONTRÉAL

Team Canada looking to gain valuable international experience

(Montréal, QC – June 19, 2014) Cycling Canada is pleased to have received an invitation from race organizer Serge Arseneault to race at the Grands Prix cyclistes de Québec et de Montréal, a set of UCI WorldTour races, and will be looking to field a powerful team for the event.

The Grands Prix cyclistes de Québec et de Montréal are the only UCI WorldTour races in the Americas, On an annual basis, these events attract the best professional cyclists in the world.

For the event, Cycling Canada will select riders to fill the eight-man roster on the merit of performances throughout the season.

“The presence of these two World Tour events that take place annually in our back yard gives us an opportunity to race against the best in the world on our streets, with fans routing for the maple leaf, which gives our cyclists a great psychological boost. Through these races our Canadian athletes get a taste of the highest level of competition and therefore gives us a chance to assess their gaps against the best in the world,” said Jacques Landry, High Performance Director and Head Coach at Cycling Canada.

The Quebec race is slated for Friday, September 12, while the Montreal race will be held September 14.

In addition to racing the UCI WorldTour races, Team Canada is also expected to field one rider, along with five other Canadian cyclists, to the Challenge Sprint Pro on September 11 in Québec city.

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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REGISTRATION OPEN FOR 2014 CANADIAN MOUNTAIN BIKE DOWNHILL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Latest version of Technical Guide is also published

The registration process for the 2014 Canadian Mountain Bike Downhill Championships is now open. Riders can register online at: https://ccnbikes.com/2014-sun-peaks-bc-cup-dh-nationals/

The latest version of the Technical/Racer Guide is also published at : https://cyclingcanada.ca/sport/cycling/events/type-of-event/canadian-championships/canadian-mtb-dh-championships-sun-peaks-bc/

SCHEDULE – 2014 CANADIAN MTB DH CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sun Peaks, BC

  • July 11: Unofficial/Unsupervised training session
  • June 12: Official training session & Seeding Runs
  • June 13: Canadian Championships

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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REGISTRATION OPEN FOR 2014 CANADIAN MOUNTAIN BIKE CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Latest version of Technical Guide is also published

The registration process for the 2014 Canadian Mountain Bike Cross-country Championships, is now open. Teams and Riders can register online at: https://zone4.ca/reg.asp?id=6041&lan=1&cartlevel=1

The latest version of the Technical Guide is also published at https://cyclingcanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/2014cdntechguide.pdf

SCHEDULE – 2014 CANADIAN MOUNTAIN BIKE CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Barrie, ON (Hardwood Ski and Bike)

  • July 17: Canadian Championships Eliminator XCE
  • July 19: Canadian Championships Cross-Country Junior/U23/Elites
  • July 20: Canadian Championships Cross-Country Team Relay/Masters
  • July 20: Challenge XCO

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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Canadian National Team invited to Tour of Alberta

Cannondale Pro Cycling, Team Giant-Shimano and Orica-GreenEDGE lead final roster of Tour of Alberta Teams

Italy’s Cannondale Pro Cycling, the team of Peter Sagan, Australia’s top team Orica-GreenEDGE and The Netherland’s Team Giant-Shimano highlight a list of 13 additional teams announced for the Tour of Alberta presented by ATB Financial, September 2-7.

The teams join previously-announced Garmin-Sharp of the United States and Belkin-Pro Cycling. All are World Tour teams who will also compete in the Tour de France. Ten additional teams were also announced, including Pro Continental teams UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling of the United States as well as a composite professional Canadian National Team.

“Like last year, we have put together a great world-class field which includes several top-ranked World Tour teams, along with the top professional teams on the North American continent,” said Tour of Alberta Executive Director Duane Vienneau. “We’re extremely pleased to have the Cannondale and Garmin-Sharp teams back, noting Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and Rohan Dennis (Garmin-Sharp) were two of the big heroes from last year’s race. To have Orica-GreenEDGE and Giant-Shimano, which have some of the world’s best sprint corps, which will really spice up what is expected to be a fast race.” 

The remaining teams include: Garneau-Quebécor (CAN); Silber Pro Cycling (CAN); Team Jelly Belly presented by MAXXIS (USA); Optum presented by Kelly Benefits Strategies (USA); Hincapie Sportswear Development Team (USA); Team SmartStop (USA); 5-Hour Energy presented by KENDA (USA) and the Bissell Development Team (USA), which is managed by Axel Merckx, who is a Canadian resident.

“I look forward to bringing the national team to Alberta again for 2014,” said Gord Fraser, the Canadian National Team Director.  “Last year’s inaugural edition was a tremendous success not only for the development of my Canadian riders, but also showcasing professional cycling to media and business leaders in western Canada and across the globe.  Last year my rider Antoine Duchesne had a fantastic race that helped him secure a place on a world tour team and I’m hoping someone from this year’s team has a similar opportunity.” Each team will have eight athletes. Preliminary rosters for the race will be announced in late August.

Last year, the event drew 120 cyclists, including athletes from 25 countries, plus Tour de France and Olympic heroes and current world and national champions. The world’s No. 2-ranked rider at the time, Sagan won three of the event’s six stages and the Subway® Sprint Points Jersey. Dennis won the overall race and this year placed second overall at the Amgen Tour of California, one of the top races outside Europe.   

2014 STAGES

  • September 2 / Tuesday / Prologue / Calgary, time trial
  • September 3 / Wednesday / Stage 1 / Lethbridge, circuit race
  • September 4 / Thursday / Stage 2 / Innisfail to Red Deer, road race
  • September 5 / Friday / Stage 3 / Wetaskiwin to Edmonton, road race
  • September 6 / Saturday / Stage 4 / Edmonton to Strathcona County, road race
  • September 7 / Sunday / Stage 5 / Edmonton, circuit race  

 

ROSTER OF TEAMS

Pro Tour Teams

  • Cannondale Pro Cycling (ITA)
  • Orica-GreenEDGE (AUS)
  • Team Giant-Shimano (NED)
  • Garmin-Sharp (USA)
  • Belkin-Pro Cycling (NED)

Pro Continental

  • UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling (USA)

Continental

  • Garneau-Quebécor (CAN)
  • Silber Pro Cycling (CAN)
  • Team Jelly Belly presented by MAXXIS (USA)
  • Optum presented by Kelly Benefits Strategies (USA)
  • Hincapie Sportswear Development Team (USA)
  • Team SmartStop (USA)
  • 5-Hour Energy presented KENDA (USA)
  • Bissell Development Team (USA)

Composite

  • Canadian National Team (CAN)
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WAYNE POMARIO INDUCTED INTO SPORTS OFFICIALS CANADA HALL OF FAME

Pomario is one of Canada’s top Road and Track UCI Commissaires

(Ottawa, ON – June 18, 2014) Wayne Pomario of Vancouver, BC from the sport of Cycling is this year’s inductee in the Builder Category and winner of the Allen G. Rae Builders Award from Sports Officials Canada.

Pomario has been involved in the sport of cycling for 23 years as a competitor, organizer, administrator and official. As an official Wayne has served at all levels. He qualified as an International Cycling Union (UCI) official in 1997.

“To me personally, it is an honour to be recognised and acknowledged by my peers. I don’t believe people become officials in order to be honoured or recognised, but receiving an accolade such as this helps drive motivation, and reinforce the reasons why I became an official in the first place,” said Pomario.

Added Pomario: “I started in this sport first as an administrator and organiser. That led me into competition, where I competed in international events, and became an Elite National Time Trial Champion. At the same time as racing I started to get involved in officiating. I guess I enjoy challenges, and so once in something I really strive to be the best I can be.”

He is qualified internationally in the Road and Track disciplines, as a national Cyclo-cross official and as a provincial A level MTB official. He has served as a member of the panel and chief commissaire at many international, national and provincial level events, including numerous Road, Track and Cyclo-cross Canadian Championships.

“I love our sport, and becoming an international official allowed me to continue my participation, and challenge myself at the same time to help improve cycling for all participants, where I include everyone from the cyclists themselves, to officials, organisers, etc.”

Pomario was graceful in sharing this award with his fellow officials across the country: “I am also extremely grateful to everyone I have worked with over the years, as I know in officiating you are not successful by yourself; you are successful as a team. I am really proud to have been able to know and work with so many wonderful people who have helped me achieve what I have been able to as an official.”

Highlights include being the chief official at five separate World Championships and being appointed to the panel at three others; his selection as the chief official at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games; being the number two official at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, and in 2010 being the chief official at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India.

Wayne is the first North American official to be appointed as the chief official for a Pro Tour event. He has also been selected as the International Technical Delegate for the road and track cycling events at the 2015 Pan Am Games. Wayne is involved in the development of rules and regulations for the International Cycling Union. He has served, and continues to serve on a number of working groups in this regard.

Pomario offers wise words for upcoming officials: “Officiating offers amazing rewards. It allows you to participate fully as a partner in our sport. But you definitely get out of it what you put into it – just like any of the other participants would experience. So look for those opportunities. Don’t stop trying to improve yourself. Don’t do it because you want recognition or rewards, because that does not often happen.”

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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TOM SKUJINS DOMINATED THE 2014 TOUR DE BEAUCE

Texte de Réal Labbé

SAINT-GEORGES, QC – Latvian cyclist Tom Skujins, of Hincapie Sportswear Development Cycling Team, is the new champion of the Tour de Beauce. He who celebrated his 23rd birthday with a victory in the last stage, which already held the yellow jersey prior to the stage, has achieved what many riders in the Tour’s history could not do before.

From the memory of those who have been following the Tour for a long time, he may be the only holder of the yellow jersey entering the last stage to win the ultimate stage, and the second U23 rider to claim the yellow jersey after Nathan Brown last year. In addition, he claimed the red jersey for the best young rider, and the white jersey for winning the points classification. On top of all these winnings, he finished second in the King of the Mountain standings.

His combined time of 16h19m09s allowed him to overtake Rob Britton (Smartstop) by 1m49s and Serghei Ţvetcov (Jelly Belly) in 2m09s. The Latvian cyclist was simply euphoric after crossing the finish line. He proved here that he had the potential to be part of a World Tour team. After winning the stage of Mont-Mégantic, he repeated Sunday with a victory in Saint-Georges. A fantastic way to highlight his 23rd birthday.

His team was also very proud of this victory. “The guys have sacrificed for me at this stage and one of them even left a part of his skin on the asphalt when he had been dropped. It really is a beautiful day, the most beautiful of my life, the other being that of my birth.”

Part of the breakaway that took off in the 73rd kilometer, Skujins kept pace until the end to cross the finish line first. “This is the way to race, and I’m the philosophy of Team Hincapie that wants to fight until the end. This is the most difficult stage after the Mont Mégantic and there was pressure to keep the yellow jersey. I had to keep the strength in my legs to make it to the line.”

Rob Britton made a race of Sunday, he who was fourth overall before the stage of St. George. His second place at the stage allowed him to take the second of the general classification.

Julien Gagné (Norco) proved to be the best Quebecers this last stage with his 29th place. This is a very good result for a mountain bike racer who turned to road cycling only a year ago. “I’m glad it’s over, it’s a very difficult race and I’m happy just to have finished it. Road races are longer than mountain bike. And had to adapt to the peloton. I’m happy with my performance and I hope that was able to sell myself a little bit with this race. Currently I’m in love with the road bike.”

This Tour de Beauce will not prevent him to participate next week at the Quebec Provincial Mountain Bike Championships, and in two weeks at the Canadian Road Championships in Lac Mégantic.

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SCHUMACHER WINS TIME TRIAL, SKUJINS RETAINS YELLOW

Text by Tour de Beauce

ST-JEAN-DE-LA-LANDE – Latvian cyclist Tom Skujins (Hincapie Sportswear) remains in the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification after the third step, an individual time trial race at the Tour de Beauce. He finished 16 seconds behind the stage winner, German Stefan Schumacher (Christina Watches-KUMA) who negotiated the 20 km course in 25m44s.

Romanian Serghei Ţvetcov (Jelly Belly) finished second with a time of 25m54s, a second better than the Canadian Ryan Roth (Silber Pro Cycling).

Among Quebecers, the best performance belongs to Rémi Pelletier-Roy (Garneau-Quebecor) in eighth place with a time of 26m14s, or 30 seconds behind the winner.

“We had to use large gears today, said Schumacher. I was identified as one of the favorites this morning, but I wondered if I had the legs to achieve good performance after the difficult stage of Mont Mégantic. I guess it was the same for everyone. During the first few miles I had the wind in the face and then back it was side winds. I looked at my time and with five kilometers left to go I had already registered 20 minutes. Then the descent came and I took advantage of a tailwind and that is where I reached a speed of 65km/h , allowing me to post the best time.”

Canadian Ryan Roth and his athletic director Gord Fraser relished his third place. “It’s very good for us, said Gord Fraser, more than you think. We had a hard day yesterday and this podium will be good for team morale. Our mechanic Dominic Cantin has done a great job on Ryan’s time trial bike because it had not been used for a year. It was his bike from Team SpiderTech.”

Roth has been with the team led by Gord Fraser for just over a week now. “He has earned his place with us, added the athletic director. Ryan is a passionate and he agreed to join an amateur team, Jetfuel, to be able to have competition.”

Ryan Roth has not been lucky in the past two years as the team he rode with were forced to close the books. “I am very happy to join Silber Pro Cycling. I wanted to take part in high caliber competitions like the Tour de Beauce, and the Jetfuel team could not provide that, even though it was very good with me. It was not an easy decision to make. I come with good form and the staff is very knowledgeable. Dominic has done a great job with my bike. I was not afraid to use it because I had good results with it before, and today I felt very comfortable. The wind was very strong and sometimes I had to leave my aerodynamic position to counter the effects of wind. I take great satisfaction from my third place and now we will try to do a good show tomorrow in Quebec.”

Best of Quebecers in the time trials, Rémi Pelletier-Roy was very happy with his time. “I’m doing well in a time trial race, but in a competition like the Tour de Beauce, it is different. With temperature, rain and wind, and after the stage of Mount Mégantic, there are riders who do not always have the motivation to go hard, especially if they are far in the overall. I did not know what to expect but I thought that might as well go 100%, and I managed well my race.”

Saturday the caravan will travel to Quebec for the fourth stage, and the fight will be active to take the possession of the yellow jersey.

RESULTS – STAGE 3 (ITT) – TOUR DE BEAUCE 2014

1. SCHUMACHER, Stefan (CHRISTINA WATCHES – KUMA) 25:44

2. TVETCOV, Serghei (JELLY BELLY P/B MAXXIS) +0:10

3. ROTH, Ryan (SILBER PRO CYCLING TEAM) +0:11

4. ROSSKOPF, Joseph (HINCAPIE SPORTSWEAR DEVELOPMENT CYCLING TEAM) +0:11

5. TERUEL, Eloy (JAMIS HAGENS BERMAN) +0:14

6. KRAGH, Asbjorn (CHRISTINA WATCHES – KUMA) +0:18

7. SMITH, Dion (HINCAPIE SPORTSWEAR DEVELOPMENT CYCLING TEAM) +0:25

8. PELLETIER-ROY, Rémi (GARNEAU-QUEBECOR) +0:30

9. ROE, Timothy (BUDGET FORKLIFTS CYCLING) +0:39

10. CARLSEN, Kirk (JELLY BELLY P/B MAXXIS) +0:40

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION – AFTER STAGE 3 – TOUR DE BEAUCE 2014

1. SKUJINS, Tom (HINCAPIE SPORTSWEAR DEVELOPMENT CYCLING) 10:01:44

2. TVETCOV, Serghei (JELLY BELLY P/B MAXXIS) +1:17

3. KRAGH, Asbjorn (CHRISTINA WATCHES – KUMA) +1:30

4. BRITTON, Rob (SMARTSTOP) +1:43

5. SCHUMACHER, Stefan (CHRISTINA WATCHES – KUMA) +1:47

6. SMITH, Dion (HINCAPIE SPORTSWEAR DEVELOPMENT CYCLING) +1:52

7. ROE, Timothy (BUDGET FORKLIFTS CYCLING) +1:53

8. CARLSEN, Kirk (JELLY BELLY P/B MAXXIS) +2:02

9. JONES, Carter (OPTUM P/B KELLY BENEFIT STRATEGIES) +2:14

10. BENEDETTI, Luca (AMORE VITA-SELLE SMP) +2:20

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CANADIAN XC MARATHON CHAMPIONSHIPS TO BE HELD IN SQUAMISH

Event to be held on August 16 in British Columbia

(Ottawa, ON – June 13, 2014) Due to exceptional circumstances, the 2014 Canadian Mountain Bike Marathon Championships (XCM) will now take place on August 16th in Squamish, BC. The event will be organized by Dwayne Kress in conjunction with Just Another Bike Race (JABR).

“Cycling Canada is really excited to collaborate with Cycling BC and JABR for the hosting of the 2014 Elite Canadian Mountain Bike Marathon Championships in Western Canada. The event annually attracts some of the country’s best mountain bikers challenging for the Red and White Jersey awarded to the Canadian Champions,” said Mathieu Boucher, Performance Development Director at Cycling Canada.

“This will expand on the success of mountain bike racing in Squamish and the west coast mountain bike racing scene that already includes the four Squamish cross-country mountain bike marathon races, the fast-growing enduro series, Crankworx events with a Canada Cup cross-country race in Whistler and now a Canadian Championship Marathon race, all within the Sea to Sky corridor,” said JABR race director Dwayne Kress.

For more information, please visit: https://cyclingcanada.ca/sport/mountain-bike/events/type-of-event/canadian-championships.

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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2014 CANADIAN BMX CHAMPIONSHIPS MOVE TO DRUMMONDVILLE

(Ottawa, ON – June 13, 2014) The 2014 Canadian BMX Championships, and the 2014 BMX Canada Cup Finals, will be held in Drummondville, QC, on October 3rd to 5th.  

The change of venue, approved by Cycling Canada’s Event Committee, comes after complications and delays with the procurement of a contractor to build the BMX venue at the Centennial Park Pan Am BMX Center, in Toronto. The event was designed to serve as a Test Event for the Toronto 2015 Pan-American Games.

“We will be unable to host in Toronto the scheduled 2014 Canadian BMX Championships and the BMX Canada Cup on October 3rd to 5th. That said, we are pleased to announce that these two events will be moved the Drummondville Quebec on the scheduled dates,” said Mathieu Boucher, Performance Development Director at Cycling Canada. “TO2015 is aware of the immense value and importance of hosting a Test Event on the new BMX track prior to the Pan American Games in July of 2015. Cycling Canada is committed to working with our Sports Partners to identify an opportunity and to support the hosting of a BMX Test Event in the spring of 2015.”

The BMX Canada Cup races scheduled in Drummondville on August 2-3 will remain on the calendar, as scheduled.

Follow Cycling Canada on Twitter at @CyclingCanada and on Facebook at @CyclingCanada.

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WHAT A SPECTACULAR WIN FOR TOM SKUJINS

Text by Tour de Beauce

LAC-MÉGANTIC – Tom Skujins, of Team Hincapie Sportswear, can take the yellow jersey of the Tour de Beauce with great pride at the end of the second stage, which started in Lac-Mégantic to finish at the top of Mont St. Joseph. Canadian Mike Woods (Amore Vita) took second place and was followed by Carter Jones (Optum P / B Kelly).

The race start, given by the Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche, was in the rain — and the race ended in the rain with a temperature close to 5 degrees Celsius. All this with the last four kilometers averaging a grade of 11.6% with peaks of 17%. Unappealing for those cyclists who had completed 167 km, spaced out thanks to two beefy climbs.

“We left the group of eight in the breakaway with thirty kilometers to go,” said the Hincapie Sportswear rider, “and because the temperature we told ourselves that the peloton would not take any risk, and it wouldn’t work a whole lot. In our group, the cohesion was good.”

With thirty kilometers to go, two riders of Smartstop decided to attack the breakaway. “It was not really the right thing to do,” continued Skujins, “not at that point in the race. I managed to join them and we worked together. At the foot of Mont Mégantic, I was not sure what to think because both riders seemed tired, but it could have been a bluff. And the field was less than two minutes behind us.”

The Latvian rider managed to outpace his breakaway companions to cross the finish line first. “I am very happy with this win, because this is my first year with the team and I’m glad to be able to offer them the victory. It’s very good for me too. I was thinking more of a win on Sunday to celebrate my 23rd birthday, but I’ll take my gift today.” The new yellow jersey holder has demonstrated a high class offering a bouquet of flowers to Mayor Lac-Mégantic during the podium ceremony.

This was for Lac-Mégantic

In this second stage, Mike Woods relished this position. “For me, it’s like a victory. I really have not been lucky this season. In March, I was the victim of a crash and I suffered a concussion, and then I was sick. So I am very satisfied of my performance today, especially since I had to change bikes early in the race because mine broke. Neutral service SRAM provided me with a bike and it took me about twenty kilometres before I’m got used to. The last two kilometres were really difficult, but as I spent four months in Italy, and I had the opportunity to climb some of the more difficult hills over there.”

For the Canadian rider, the city of Mégantic is something special. “This is my third participation at this stage of Mont-Mégantic, and as a Canadian, the tragedy that struck this town really touched me. That’s why I dedicate this race and my second place to all the people of this region.”

Friday, the caravan of the Tour de Beauce transfers to Saint-Jean-de-la-Lande for the individual time trial.

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