News – Page 66 – Cycling Canada Cyclisme

CYCLING CANADA PRESIDENT NOMINATIONS NOW CLOSED

Ottawa, ON (November 29, 2018) – After announcing earlier this month that Cycling Canada’s current President John Tolkamp will officially step down from his position this December after 10 years at the helm of the organization’s Board of Directors, the nominations for this position have officially closed. A special meeting will be held December 12^th where the new President will be elected by Cycling Canada’s Provincial and Territorial organizations.

A total of three nominations were submitted, including current Board members Pierre Laflamme (Quebec, QC) and Robin Porter (Toronto, ON), as well as Stefano Rover (Montreal, QC) who previously served on Cycling Canada’s Board between 2009 and 2012.

Cycling Canada’s Inter-Provincial Council will conduct candidate interviews during the week of December 3^rd in advance of the special election meeting. The newly-elected President will serve for the balance of the current 4-year term, which will conclude in October of 2021.

More information about Cycling Canada’s Policy on Organization Structure and the three nominees can be found at https://cyclingcanada.ca/governance/.

November 29, 2018/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES WORLD CUP TEAMS FOR BERLIN & LONDON

Berlin, Germany (November 28, 2018) – Cycling Canada has selected a strong team of endurance and sprint athletes to compete in Rounds 3 and 4 of the Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup. Round 3 will take place in Berlin, Germany on November 30th to December 2nd, followed by Round 4 in London, England, on December 14-16. A number of the athletes will also compete in C1 sanctioned events in Portugal and Switzerland, as Canada continues to collect valuable ranking points towards qualification for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“This next month is going to be very important for our track programs,” said Jessika Grand Bois, Track Program Manager for Cycling Canada. “We’re hoping to build on the good performances our team had in Milton [World Cup] last month to keep gaining valuable points in Berlin and London for Olympic qualifications. We will also have a mix of elite and development riders competing in Portugal and Switzerland during the next month, before a quick break for the holidays and before we attack the last set of World Cups of the season.”

The Berlin World Cup, site of the 2020 Track World Championships, will feature a full team of endurance and sprint athletes. Rio Olympic bronze medallist Allison Beveridge will compete in both the Omnium and Madison, and will be joined by Steph Roorda for the Madison. Roorda, Kinley Gibson, Ariane Bonhomme and Annie Foreman-Mackey will compete in the Team Pursuit, with the men’s endurance squad also competing in this event and Derek Gee competing in the Omnium.

The sprint squad is led by Rio Olympian Hugo Barrette, who will compete in the Sprint and Keirin events, after winning silver at the Milton World Cup last month. He will be joined in both events by NextGen athlete Joel Archambault, riding on the P2M development team. Lauriane Genest and Amelia Walsh will both compete in the women’s Team Sprint and Sprint, with Genest also competing in the Keirin.

For the London World Cup, held at the London Olympic velodrome, Canada will send the same sprint squad but only three endurance athletes – Beveridge for the Omnium and Madison, Roorda for the Madison and Aidan Caves for the men’s Omnium.

Berlin World Cup
(TP – Team Pursuit, OM – Omnium, MAD – Madison, KI – Kilo, TS – Team Sprint, SP – Sprint, KE – Keirin)

Women’s Endurance
Allison Beveridge – Calgary, AB [OM, MAD, TP reserve]
Steph Roorda – Vancouver, BC [TP, MAD]
Kinley Gibson – Edmonton, AB [TP]
Ariane Bonhomme – Gatineau, QC [TP]
Annie Foreman-Mackey – Kingston, ON [TP]

Men’s Endurance
Derek Gee – Ottawa, ON [TP, OM]
Adam Jamieson – Barrie, ON [TP]
Aidan Caves – Vancouver, BC [KI, TP]
Michael Foley – Milton, ON [TP]
Jay Lamoureux – Victoria, BC [TP]

Sprint
Hugo Barrette – Iles-de-la-Madeleine, QC [SP, KE]
Joel Archambault (P2M trade team) – St-Christine, QC [SP, KE]
Amelia Walsh – Ayr, ON [TS, SP]
Lauriane Genest – Levis, QC [TS, SP, KE]

London World Cup

Endurance
Allison Beveridge – Calgary, AB [OM, MAD]
Steph Roorda – Vancouver, BC [MAD]
Aidan Caves – Vancouver, BC [OM]

Sprint
Hugo Barrette – Iles-de-la-Madeleine, QC [SP, KE]
Joel Archambault (P2M trade team) – St-Christine, QC [SP, KE]
Amelia Walsh – Ayr, ON [TS, SP, KE]
Lauriane Genest – Levis, QC [TS, SP]

November 28, 2018/by Communications

CALL FOR ATHLETES COUNCIL CANDIDATES

Ottawa, ON (November 20, 2018) – Cycling Canada is presently looking for current or recent National Team members who are interested in being part of the Athletes Council. If you would like to play a part in decisions that affect the future of Cycling Canada’s national team programs, you can do this by becoming a member of the Council.

The terms of reference for the council can be found in Cycling Canada’s Policy on Organizational Structure. To summarize:

The Athletes Council is made up of one male and one female representative each from Road, Track, Mountain Bike, BMX and Para-cycling
Members serve two-year terms
The council chair sits on the Cycling Canada Board of Directors
The vice-chair sits on the Cycling Canada High Performance Committee
The current members are:
- Lex Albrecht (Road female)
- Meghan Grant (Track female)
- Hugo Houle (Road male)
- Geoff Kabush (MTB male)
- James Palmer (BMX male)
- Rémi Pelletier-Roy (Track male)
- Catharine Pendrel (MTB female)
- Amelia Walsh (BMX female)
- Ross Wilson (Para male)
- Para female position is vacant

If you are interested in being part of the Athletes Council,

please complete the online form. The deadline is Dec. 2, 2018. If there are more candidates than positions available, the current national team members will be asked to vote for their preferred representatives before Dec. 9. The new AC composition will be announced on Dec. 10.

If you have any questions, please contact High Performance Committee Chair Kirsten Frattini, or Cycling Canada Head of Performance Operations Kris Westwood.

November 20, 2018/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES 2019 NATIONAL CALENDAR

Ottawa, ON (November 14, 2018) – Cycling Canada is pleased to release the national and international events competition schedule for 2019. Beginning in February and running through to December, the competitions calendar spans the country, with events ranging from the Atlantic provinces to the Pacific coast.

“We are very excited to announce our complete 2019 National and International race calendar,” said Josh Peacock, Events Manager at Cycling Canada. “Through the support of our provincial partners and event organizers – both new and returning – we are confident that this calendar will provide athletes in all disciplines every opportunity to perform at their best on Canadian soil. Our overall calendar continues to expand both in quantity and in quality of competition offered. We would like to extend a very special thank you to all of our dedicated organizers and host communities who continue to support the sport of cycling across the Nation, and look forward to another great year of racing.”

The Mountain Bike Canada Cup series opens the off-road calendar with what is becoming the traditional start to the XCO season at Bear Mountain in Victoria, BC, on March 31st. This year, the Series offers an expanded number of races, with eight taking place from coast to coast. The Canada Cup Series concludes in Kentville, Nova Scotia, on August 17-18; the second year for this venue.

Under-17 Men and Women were added as official Canada Cup Mountain Bike categories on the XCO side last year and will continue this year. Riders will be awarded the same points scale as the Juniors and will be required to race the same number of events as the Juniors to qualify for an overall Series ranking. The number of UCI-sanctioned Junior XCO events will be doubled to six – including four at the UCI Junior Series level – offering Juniors maximum opportunities to gain UCI points. After a five year absence, the XCO National Championships will return to Hardwood Ski & Bike in Ontario for 2019 and 2020. The domestic cross-country program concludes on September 7-8 with the Marathon National Championships in St-Felicien, Quebec.

The highlight of the season will be Mont-Ste-Anne, Quebec, which will play host for a record third time to the UCI World Championships for both Masters (August 21-23) and Elite/Under-23/Junior (August 28th – September 1st) in XCO and Downhill.

The Downhill Canada Cup Series will cap off in Mont Tremblant as a part of the Crossroads event weekend, before returning to British Columbia, at SilverStar Resort and then Fernie for the second and third rounds. Silverstar and Fernie will create a July triple header western race schedule for Downhill, which will conclude with both the Downhill and new Enduro National Championships at Panorama, BC, on July 27-28. The domestic downhill program will conclude with the Canadian Open in Whistler on August 18^th.

The national Road calendar begins in June, starting with the Masters Nationals in Victoria, BC, followed by four UCI-sanctioned events in Quebec – GP Cycliste Gatineau and Chrono de Gatineau for women, and the GP Cycliste de Saguenay and Tour de Beauce for men. From June 28 to July 1^st, the National Road Championships for Elite, Under-23, Junior and Para riders will take place in Beauce.

Road racing continues through the summer, with the Tour de la Relève Rimouski in Quebec at the beginning of July, followed by the UCI-sanctioned Delta Road Race and Global Relay Gastown GP in BC’s Lower Mainland. The Tour de l’Abitibi, one of the premier stage races for Junior men in the world, returns for its 51st edition from July 15-21. The Road calendar concludes in early September with the Quebec City and Montreal WorldTour races on September 13th and 15th.

The BMX national calendar events will take place in July and August. Three Canada Cup events, all with a UCI C1 sanction, will take place in Toronto (July 6-7), Drummondville, Quebec (July 13-14) and Calgary (August 17-18), the host of the 2016-2017 national championships. The National Championships will take place in Toronto on the same weekend as the Canada Cup event, and will be the primary qualifying event for the 2020 BMX world championships in Houston, USA.

Canada’s national track program will be centered around the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, with four of five events on the calendar taking place there. For Junior and Under-17 riders, there will be a Western Challenge (January 18-20) in Burnaby, BC, and an Eastern Challenge (February 9-10) in Milton. These will lead into the National Championships at Milton on April 12-14 for U17, Junior and Para athletes. The Elite and Masters riders will have their National Championships in Milton in the Fall, and the UCI Track World Cup will return to Milton for the 2019-20 season.

Peterborough, Ontario will once again play host to the 2019 Canadian Cyclo-cross Championships following a successful season-closing event in 2018. Cyclo-cross enthusiasts should expect another exciting season in 2019, with finalized details of the upcoming calendar to be released in the coming weeks.

Finally, the Para national schedule consists of four events, all on the UCI calendar. On April 12-14 the Para Track Nationals will take place in Milton, followed by the Défi sportif AlterGo road event in Montreal on May 4-5. The Para Road Nationals will take place in Beauce, on June 28-29, and the UCI Para Road World Cup returns to Baie Comeau, Quebec, on August 8-11.

November 14, 2018/by Communications

ROCHETTE & VAN DEN HAM WIN NATIONAL CYCLO-CROSS TITLES

Peterborough, ON (November 11, 2018) – A total of 11 national titles were awarded on Saturday at the Canadian Cyclo-cross Championships p/b Shimano in Peterborough, Ontario, with riders facing snow and bitterly cold wind, taking the temperature down to -8C.

The marquee Elite titles went to the two favourites – Maghalie Rochette (CX Fever Specialized) for the women, and Michael van den Ham (Garneau Easton) for the men.

Rochette took the lead in the first kilometre and never looked back, eventually winning by over a minute. Behind, mountain bikers Jenn Jackson (AWI Racing p/b The Crank and Sprocket) and Sandra Walter (Liv Cycling Canada) battled for silver all race, with Jackson eventually pulling clear in the final lap.

“It was cold out there,” said Rochette, “but it was perfect for the Canadian national championships. It is a challenge to ride in the cold – it’s difficult to breathe and you tighten up … you just have to keep pushing hard because that is the only thing that will warm you up.”

The 2015 national champion Raphael Gagne (Silverback-OMX) had his usual fast start to get the holeshot, with van den Ham chasing along with Geoff Kabush (Yeti Maxxis Shimano) and Marc-Andre Fortier (Pivot-OTE). Van den Ham got a gap on the other two chasers to get by Gagne first, with the other two also passing the early leader. Kabush was steadily closing on van den Ham through the final laps, but couldn’t quite manage to close the gap, finishing six seconds back, with Fortier taking the bronze medal.

“The track was changing all the time,” said van den Ham. “The sun would come out and it would start to thaw, and then it would get cloudy and start to freeze again, so the conditions were changing throughout the day. All you could do was show up, race the course and see what happens. I knew Raph [Gagne] would have a fast start, but I was pretty confident I could bring him back. I think it played to my advantage because Geoff [Kabush] is a fast finisher, so getting that gap was key to holding him off at the end.”

In the Under-23 categories, Ruby West (Specialized Ten Speed Hero) successfully defended her women’s title, while Gunnar Homgren (Hardwood Next Wave) rode away from the field to take the men’s title. Carter Woods (Naked Factory Team) won the Junior men’s title.

November 11, 2018/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA PRESIDENT JOHN TOLKAMP TO OFFICIALLY STEP DOWN IN DECEMBER

Ottawa, ON (November 9, 2018) – Cycling Canada announced today that its President John Tolkamp will officially step down from his position this December after 10 years at the helm of the organization’s Board of Directors. A special meeting has been called for December 12^th where a new President will be elected by the organization’s Provincial and Territorial members.

Tolkamp served as a director-at-large for 6 years on Cycling Canada’s Board before moving into the position of President in October of 2008. The organization has seen a period of tremendous growth over this period, with total revenues nearly tripling from $3.1 million to over $9.0 million, driven primarily through increases in enhanced excellence funding to support the organization’s high performance programs. Tolkamp was instrumental in Cycling Canada adopting a stronger stance in the fight against doping and during his tenure the Mattamy National Cycling Center in Milton, Ontario, was constructed, which helped increase the number of international cycling events hosted in the country.

“This was certainly a difficult decision, and one made after serious thought and consideration which included input from stakeholders, senior staff and the Board,” said Tolkamp. “With the recent changes in our senior management team it is also time for fresh leadership at the Board level to ensure the staff and entire organization is best positioned for success going forward.”

“I want to thank the entire Canadian cycling community for their support and collaboration over my term as President. It has been an absolute privilege to serve in this role and these 10 years have been immensely fulfilling, rewarding and one of the highlights of my life. We have accomplished much to improve and grow our sport in Canada and I have full confidence that my successor will continue this great momentum. While I am stepping down as President, my passion for the sport of cycling remains and I look forward to exploring other ways to grow the sport and continuing to support our athletes and the long term goals and objectives of Cycling Canada.”

The nomination process for Cycling Canada’s new President will officially open on November 12^th with all nominations due by close of business (5:00 p.m. ET) on November 28^th, 10 working days prior to the special election meeting. The newly-elected President will serve for the balance of the current 4-year term, which will conclude in October of 2021.

For additional details please refer to the Nomination Form and the Cycling Canada Policy on Organization Structure.

November 9, 2018/by Communications

STRONG FIELDS TO CONTEND FOR NATIONAL CYCLO-CROSS TITLES

Peterborough, ON (November 9, 2018) – The final National Championships of 2018 will take place on November 10th in Peterborough, Ontario, with the Shimano Canadian Cyclo-cross Championships, where maple leaf jerseys will be awarded to women and men across Masters, Junior, Under-23 and Elite categories. On Sunday, the domestic cyclo-cross season will conclude with the UCI C2 sanctioned Peterborough CX races.

Competition will take place in Nicholls Oval Park, with racing starting at 10:00 am for the Masters categories. In the afternoon, the Junior women and men will race, followed by the Under-23 and, finally, the Elite men and women. Over 350 athletes are registered to compete.

“We are very excited to cap off our 2018 season with the Canadian Cyclo-cross Championships, to be hosted in Peterborough’s iconic Nicholls Oval Park,” said Josh Peacock, Events Manager at Cycling Canada. “This year will be the first of a two-year commitment from the organizer to bring the event to the region, and we anticipate action-packed racing across all categories. Riders will be entering the weekend looking for redemption following the Pan American Championships, and as a result we expect attendance will be high and competition fierce.”

The Elite women’s field will be led by the new Pan American Continental champion and 2016 national champion – Maghalie Rochette (CX Fever p/b Specialized). Rochette will have plenty of competition, including Olympic mountain bike bronze medallist and former national cyclo-cross champion Catharine Pendrel (Clif Pro Team), two-time Olympic track bronze medallist Jasmin Duehring (Twenty20), Canada Cup champion Jenn Jackson (AWI Racing p/b The Crank and Sprocket), former national cyclo-cross champion Mical Dyck (Naked Factory Racing), Sandra Walter (Liv Cycling) and Commonwealth Games mountain bike bronze medallist Haley Smith (Norco Factory Racing). Missing from the field will be defending champion Christel Ferrier, who is expecting her second child next spring.

The Elite men’s field will show equal depth, with three former national champions on the start line. Defending champion Michael van den Ham (Garneau-Easton) finished only half a bike length out of the Pan Am title last Sunday, and will be even more motivated for a win this weekend. He will have to contend with a field that includes 2015 national champion Raphael Gagne (Silverback-OMX) and the legendary Geoff Kabush (Yeti Maxxis Shimano), a five-time national champion in cyclo-cross. Other podium contenders include Peter Disera (Norco Factory Racing), Andrew L’Esperance (Forward Racing Norco), Marc-Andre Fortier (Pivot Cycles-OTE) and Trevor O’Donnell (Lakeside Storage/Bicycles Plus).

Carter Woods (Naked Factory Racing), who was third at the Pan Am Championships, will lead the Junior men’s field, but will face competition from Ryan Maclean (Juventus CC) and Dylan Kerr (AJ’s Evolution p/b Norco). In the Under-23 men’s category, Gunnar Holmgren (Hardwood Next Wave) will face defending champion Raphael Auclair (Pivot Cycles-OTE), as well as Quinton Disera (Norco Factory Racing), Brody Sanderson (AWI Racing p/b The Crank and Sprocket) and Tyler Orschel (Durham Shredders).

In the women’s Under-23 category, defending champion Ruby West (Specialized Ten Speed Hero) is the favourite, after finishing second at the Pan Am Championships. However, four other Canadians finished in the top-8 at the Pan Ams and will be contending for podium spots: Emilly Johnston (Naked Factory Racing), Dana Gilligan (Macogep-Argon18-Girondins de Bordeaux P/P Mazda), Magdeleine Vallieres Mill (Quebecor / Stingray) and Sidney McGill (Focus CX Canada).

November 9, 2018/by Communications

FOUR ATHLETES WILL REPRESENT CANADA AT THE URBAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Chengdu, China (November 8, 2018) – Four athletes will be representing Canada at the UCI Urban Cycling World Championships this weekend, in Chengdu, China. This is the second edition of these world championships, and includes three disciplines: Freestyle BMX, Trials and Mountain Bike Eliminator.

Freestyle BMX will makes its debut at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, in 2020, and three Canadian athletes will participate in these world championships to work towards qualifying Canada for the Games. The Freestyle team is led by Drew Bezanson of Truro, Nova Scotia, a former X Games silver medallist. He will be joined in the Elite men’s category by Joel Bondu of Montreal, who finished 21st overall in the Elite men’s UCI World Cup rankings. In the Elite women’s category, Sarah Dinel of Mississauga, Ontario, will be the only Canadian competitor.

In the Trials competition, Canada will be represented by Jeff Anderson of Coquitlam, BC. Anderson will compete in the Elite men’s 26″ category.

“The 2019 Urban Worlds is an important event in the lead up to the 2020 Olympics for BMX Park,” said Brendan Arnold, National NextGen BMX Coach. “The qualifying period began November 1st, and Canada will have solid representation in the men’s and women’s competition, with former World Cup winner Drew Bezanson leading the Canadian team to Chengdu. It’s an exciting time for Freestyle BMX, as the sport begins its chase to the first Olympics. Canada has athletes that have proved they can compete on the International stage, so it’s going to be an exciting journey.”

November 8, 2018/by Communications

ROCHETTE TAKES CYCLO-CROSS CONTINENTAL TITLE

Midland, ON (November 5, 2018) – Maghalie Rochette (CX Fever Specialized) became the first Canadian rider to win the Pan American Cyclo-cross Championships on Sunday, in Midland, Ontario, when she won the Elite women’s race. Three other Canadians won medals Sunday – Michael van den Ham (Garneau Easton) in Elite Men, Ruby West (Specialized Ten Speed Hero) in Under-23 women, and Carter Woods (Naked Factory Racing) in Junior men. Three Canadian riders also won titles on Saturday in the Masters categories.

These were the fifth Pan American Championships, and the first to be held in Canada, with nearly 300 riders competing across 13 categories for the Continental champion jerseys. Masters racers faced sun, rain, sleet, hail and snow during their races on Saturday, while the Junior, Under-23 and Elite riders had sun, but biting cold wind on Sunday.

In the absence of four-time women’s champion Katie Compton (Trek), the women’s race was expected to be a battle between Rochette and American rider Ellen Noble (Trek Factory). Rochette and Noble rode together until just before the start of the final lap, when the American tried to squeeze by Rochette and crashed, giving Rochette enough of a gap that she was able to stay away and even extend her lead before the finish line.

“Today I was all about being clean and not making any mistakes,” said Rochette, referring to her crash and flat tire on the previous day in the C2 race. “It’s very special to win this; I think it is my biggest win so far. The best thing today was to have all the Canadian fans; they were on fire! To win the title in front of a home crowd is pretty cool.”

The 60 minute men’s race was one of attrition. Van den Ham was aggressive from the start, leading a group of contenders that gradually dwindled to four – van den Ham, Curtis White (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com), Kerry Werner (Kona Maxxis Shimano) and defending champion Stephen Hyde (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com). Hyde surged with two and a half laps to go, only to crash on the stairs, taking van den Ham down with him and enabling White to open a six second gap. Hyde dropped out shortly after, while van den Ham was able to bridge across to Hyde before the start of the last lap, setting the stage for a two-up sprint finish. Van den ham led out the long sprint, leaving little room along the barriers for White, but it was enough, and the American won by half a bike, as van den Ham pounded his bars in frustration.

“I went out there and gave it what I had; it’s one of the closest races I’ve ever been in,” said van den Ham. “Curtis was riding really strong and we came down to the finish stretch; it’s one of those finish stretches where you might be able to win from the front, so I decided to lead it out. It just came down to an all-out sprint and he’s a quick guy, just had that little extra jump on me today. It’s a little disappointing now, but it was amazing to race in front of the home crowd.”

In other categories, defending Canadian champion Ruby West and American Clara Honsinger (Team S&M CX) rode away from the rest of the field, with Honsinger pulling away in the last two laps to take the Under-23 women’s title. Carter Woods came within two seconds of taking the Junior men’s title.

Masters titles won by Canadians went to Patricia Konantz (Ride with Rendall) in Women 65+, Lisa Holmgren (Hardwood Next Wave Cycling Team) in Women’s 45-54 and Sarah Gilchrist (Edmonton Road & Track) in Women’s 35-44. Robert Orange (Ride with Rendall p/b Biemme) was 30 seconds ahead in the Men’s 55-64 category with only half a lap to go when he crashed heavily and had to pull out of the race.

November 5, 2018/by Communications

PAN AM CYCLO-CROSS CHAMPIONSHIPS WELCOMES 300+ RIDERS

Midland, ON (November 2, 2018) – The Pan American Cyclo-cross Championships will come to Canada this weekend, on November 3-4 at Little Lake Park in Midland, Ontario, 90 minutes north of Toronto. This is the first time the Continental Championships for cyclo-cross will take place in Canada.

Organizers of the UCI-sanctioned Silver Goose cyclo-cross races and CykelHaus Race Promotions will host the event, which will feature Elite, Under-23, Junior women and men, and, for the first time, Masters age-category competition for both women and men. Over 300 riders are registered to race, a significant increase over last year’s event in Louisville, Kentucky.

“We are thrilled to welcome the Pan American Cyclo-cross Championships to Midland, Ontario, as a part of the Silver Goose Festival of Cross,” said Josh Peacock, Events Manager at Cycling Canada. “This event represents two important milestones; not only is this the first time the event has been hosted in Canada, but the very first time this event will offer official Pan Am titles to Masters riders. Continental Championships offer an important opportunity for riders to gain access to a higher level of UCI points compared to a traditional C1 or C2, and as a result we expect the competition to be strong at this year’s event. Elite and Junior racers will also be treated to a UCI C2 sanctioned event on Saturday, providing maximum racing and points-grabbing opportunities.”

Competition begins on Saturday, November 3rd, with the Pan American Championships for Masters categories, plus UCI C2 sanction races for Elite women and men, and Junior men. Sunday, the Pan American Championships will take place for both women and men in the Elite and Under-23 categories, as well as Junior men.

“We are extremely excited to be hosting this premiere event in Midland,” said event organizer John Hauser. “This event would not be possible without the generous support of the Government of Ontario Sport Hosting Program. Through the Sport Hosting Program grant we will bring world class competition to rural Ontario, and hopefully inspire youth and individuals of all ages to aspire to the determination exhibited by the athletes in this competition.”

November 2, 2018/by Communications