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BATTY & DISERA REPEAT AS XCO CHAMPIONS

Canmore, AB (July 22, 2018) – The 2018 Canadian XCO Championships saw both the women’s and men’s Elite champions successfully defend their titles on Saturday at the Nordic Centre in Canmore, Alberta, with Emily Batty (Trek Factory) winning the women’s title and Peter Disera (Norco Factory) the men’s.

The four kilometre circuit offered a spectacular backdrop of the Kananaskis Country mountains leading into the Banff National Park. Riders faced both steep climbs and technical, rocky descents, that saw more than one rider crash or suffer punctures.

Batty, coming off back-to-back top-3 finishes in World Cup competition, was the clear favourite as she went for her fourth Elite title, and the third consecutive one, especially with her usual rival Catharine Pendrel (Clif Pro Team) on the sidelines recovering from injury. She opened a gap on the start loop and never looked back, extending her lead throughout the race to win by 3:40.

“It was a great day,” said Batty. “The other girls put a lot of pressure on for the first couple of laps. I’ve had a lot of travel, so I wasn’t sure, but I had a lot of good sensations today. It’s a track that if you lose focus for a second, you will hit the dust, so I treated it like a World Cup, and tried to get as much time as I could, because anything could go wrong.”

Behind, it was a battle between Sandra Walter (Liv Canada) and Haley Smith (Norco Factory). Smith carved out a lead in the opening laps, but then flatted, and was passed by Walter as she had a wheel change in the pits. Walter then extended the initial 15 second lead she held to finish 2:20 ahead of Smith.

In the Under-23 race, Laurie Arseneault (ACQ) took the title ahead of Emily Unterberger (Pendrel Racing), with Sophianne Samson (CVM Sigma Assurance) finishing third. Roxanne Vermette (Equipe du Quebec) repeated as the Junior women’s champion.

The Elite men’s race quickly came down to a battle between Disera and Raphael Gagne (Silverback OMX). The two rode together for the first two laps until Gagne attacked, steadily opening a gap to 50 seconds by the start of the last lap. Unfortunately for Gagne, he suffered a slow leak in his rear tire as he came into the last lap and was passed by Disera while going into the pit for a wheel change and fell further back as Disera powered on to win his second national Elite title. Leandre Bouchard (KMC-Ekoi-SR Suntour), despite crashing heavily in the first lap and gashing open his right knee, hung on for third.

“I was so scared going into this race,” said Disera. “I knew I wanted to defend but wasn’t sure where the form was at. From the gun, I just decided I was going to stick it and went all out for the first 20 minutes. Raph was the only one to stay with me and he came around me and I was all of a sudden gapped. I stayed with it, but I was realistic, thinking I was probably second, and then I saw Raph in the pits changing a flat, and thought I had a shot. So, I just rode completely crosseyed the last lap. I feel bad because Raph was riding super strong, but as we saw at the Horseshoe Canada Cup when I broke a chain, it’s just racing, and not necessarily fair sometimes.”

In the Under-23 race, Sean Fincham (Forward Racing Norco) rode away from the rest of the field and up through the Elite field – which had started two minutes ahead – to catch all but the first three Elite riders. Pivot-OTE riders Marc-Andre Fortier and Raphael Auclair took the other two podium spots. Carter Woods (Cycling BC) took the Junior men’s title.

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PICKRELL TAKES SECOND WIN AT TOUR DE L’ABITIBI

Val-d’Or, QC (July 21, 2018) – Team Canada’s Riley Pickrell earned his second victory at the Tour de l’Abitibi on Friday in the fifth stage, a 99.8 kilometre road race between Amos and Val-d’Or, that took place under a hot sun. Pickrell extended his lead in the Points competition with his win. Riley Sheehan (Team USA) solidified his hold on the Brown Jersey of race leader by finishing third behind Taisei Hino (Team Japan).

“Once we were in the circuit, I knew it would be hard to move up, and if you’re 20 wheels back, you’re very unlikely to win the race,” explained Pickrell.  “My teammates worked really hard for me to navigate the two roundabouts coming in to the circuit, keeping me in good position.”

The race was marked by a fall involving about fifteen participants about one third of the way through the stage. Five cyclists were later forced to retire.

Sheehan has managed to raise his lead from 11 to 15 seconds over Team USA team mates Kendrick Boots and Michael Garrison in the GC competition, with Canadian road champion Ben Katerberg (TaG Cycling) remaining in fourth, at 19 seconds. Pickrell now leads the points standings with 102 point, 14 more than Hino.

For the sixth and penultimate stage of the Tour on Saturday, cyclists will stay in Val-d’Or for a 104 kilometre urban circuit.

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PICKRELL SECOND IN STAGE 4 AT TOUR DE L’ABITIBI

Val-d’Or, QC (July 20, 2018) – After taking the Brown Jersey at the Tour de l’Abitibi in the Stage 3 time trial on Thursday morning, Riley Sheehan (Team USA) extended his lead in the overall classification later in the day on Stage 4 by winning the field sprint and grabbing the six bonus seconds on offer. Team Canada’s Riley Pickrell, the winner of Stage 1, finished second and took back the Points Jersey.

The short 52.8 kilometre stage that began and finished in the town of Malartic was controlled by the U.S. national team, who quickly shut down any break attempts. Gusting crosswinds also discouraged efforts to get away, and the field came into the final kilometre intact. Sheehan lead up the false flat final straightaway, with Pickrell closing in the last 100 metres, but running out of road. Yoshiaki Fukuda (Japan) took third ahead of team mate Taisei Hino, who lost the Points Jersey to Pickrell. Robin Plamondon (Team Canada) also made the top-10, finishing eighth.

“It was a very good stage, but I would have been happier with the win,” admitted Pickrell. “It was a well raced stage by team USA, so I have to accept second. The wind was a huge factor; the main crosswind section was two kilometres before an intermediate sprint [won by Pickrell] so the pace was fast, and if you were caught out of the first echelon, you had to do a lot of work. The focus has shifted a bit [for the team]; we will still be going for stage wins, but the goal will be to come away from Abitibi with a jersey.”

Sheehan now leads his two team mates Kendrick Boots and Michael Garrison by 11 seconds, with Canadian road and time trial champion Ben Katerberg (Tag Cycling) remaining in fourth, now 15 seconds back.  Garrison remains in the Blue Jersey as Best Young Rider, as does Kevin Cervantes (Alterra Home Loans) in the Climber’s Jersey, since there were no KoMs contested.

In the Points competition, Pickrell now has 72 points to Hino’s 64, with Sheehan moving into third with 54 points.

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XCO MTB NATIONALS RETURN TO CANMORE

Canmore, AB (July 19, 2018) – The Canadian XCO Championships will return to Canmore, Alberta, on July 21-22, for the second consecutive year. The Canmore venue, site of the 1988 Olympic cross-country skiing events, remains as spectacular as ever, with a backdrop of the Kananaskis Country mountains leading into the Banff National Park.

Last year, the circuit was revised substantially from when the Championships were previously held in 2010 and 2011, reflecting the change to shorter courses at the World Cup and world championship level. The previous course measured 6.8 kilometres, while the current circuit is four kilometres in length, looping back into the main finish bowl area multiple times. For this year, organizers have made further tweaks to the course.

“We are thrilled to return to beautiful Canmore, Alberta, for the 2018 edition of our XCO Canadian Championships,” said Josh Peacock, Competition Coordinator at Cycling Canada. “Riders were treated to a world class race course in 2017, and organizers have been hard at work to add more challenging features that will be sure to test Canada’s best as they compete for the coveted maple leaf jersey. With all of Canada’s biggest names in XC anticipated to attend, we’re expecting some close battles on one of Canada’s most technically challenging XC race venues.”

The Cross-country championships for men and women will take place on Saturday, July 21st, for categories ranging from Cadet (Under-17) through Junior (Under-19), Under-23, Elite and Masters. On Sunday, July 22nd, the Team Relay event will conclude the Championships.

The Elite women’s race will see Emily Batty (Trek Factory) go for her fourth title, fresh off back-to-back podiums in World Cup competition. One of Batty’s main rivals will be missing – Olympic bronze medalist Catharine Pendrel (Clif Pro Team) is recovering from an injury suffered in training. However, Haley Smith (Norco Factory) and Sandra Walter (Liv Giant) have shown that they are potential challengers for the podium, both scoring multiple top-20 results on the World Cup circuit this season.

The men’s race has a deep field of contenders, including top Canadian World Cup ranked Leandre Bouchard (KMC-Ekoi-SR Suntour), defending champion Peter Disera (Norco Factory), Rio Olympian Raphael Gagne (Silverback OMX) and Andrew L’Esperance (Forward Racing Norco).

More information: http://mtbnationalscanmore.ca/ 

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PICKRELL TAKES LEAD ON STAGE 1 OF TOUR DE L’ABITIBI

Val-d’Or, QC (July 18, 2018) – Team Canada got off to a strong start at the first stage of the Tour de l’Abitibi, with national Criterium champion Riley Pickrell winning the field sprint, putting him in the brown leader’s jersey, plus the Points and Best Young Rider jerseys.

The 50th edition of the Tour de l’Abitibi began in one of the traditional host cities – Rouyn-Noranda – and ended 115 kilometres later at this year’s host city, Val d’Or. Strong cross and tail winds discouraged breakaways, and Team Canada worked hard to keep any dangerous moves from getting away in their plan to set up Pickrell.

The race saw a number of crashes in the final 40 kilometres, and missed one section as the lead police escort went straight when they should have turned; a mistake that shortened the race by a couple of kilometres but had no real impact on the outcome.

The peloton entered Val d’Or with half of the 150 rider field still together, while the rest of the field were broken up into small chase groups.  Three finish loops made no changes, and the final false flat straight became a drag race between Pickrell, American rider Eduardo Cruz De La Mora (Alterra Home Loans Cycling Team) and Taisei Hino (Team Japan). Pickrell went straight up the middle, with a speed the others could not match. Cruz De La Mora took second just in front of Hino.

“It’s an amazing start for the team,” said Pickrell. “Our team rode fantastically; we had a strategy where two riders worked early in the race, two worked later in the race and one was a sweeper on my wheel in the sprint, and it was executed beautifully. The wind was a big factor in the last quarter of the race and we had to do a lot of communicating to make our way through the field and protect ourselves from the crosswinds.”

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EMILY BATTY THIRD AT MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CUP #5

Vallnord, Andorra (July 16, 2018) – Canadian women continued to ride strongly at Round 5 of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Vallnord, Andorra, with three athletes making it in the top-20 in the Elite race for the second weekend in a row. Emily Batty (Trek Factory) took her second podium in as many weeks, finishing third, while Haley Smith (Norco Factory) was a career-best 13th and Sandra Walter (Canadian National) 17th.

Batty was with the race leaders until a mechanical problem with her chain forced her to stop on the second lap, dropping her to sixth, 22 seconds back. The Canadian champion rode her way back to a chase group behind the two leaders, before attacking on the penultimate lap to solo in for third behind Norway’s Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa and Switzerland’s Jolanda Neff. In other Canadian results, Cindy Montambault (Canadian National) was 34th, Elyse Nieuwold (Pendrel Racing) 39th, Catherine Fleury 43rd and Rebecca Beaumont 44th.

“I had a great first lap and felt really strong,” said Batty. “I made a mistake [shifting] into one of the corners going from a downhill into an uphill, so I lost time there. I had a strong race and felt good despite the altitude; I did some training at altitude in Livigno [Italy]. I was well prepared and going for it, but that one mistake cost me a lot of time. The rest of the race was a matter of trying to make up that time, so third is pretty good for today.”

In the Elite men’s race, Leandre Bouchard (KMC-Ekoi-SR Suntour) was 34th, matching his best result of the season. Also finishing in the top-50 was Canadian champion Peter Disera (Norco Factory) in 43rd place. Raphael Gagne (Silverback OMX) finished in 61st, Andrew L’Esperance (Canadian National) 69th, and Alexandre Vialle 90th.

Canada also had top-20 results in the Under-23 category, with Team Canada riders Mackenzie Myatt and Sean Fincham both finishing 19th in the women’s and men’s races respectively.

Dan Proulx, National Mountain Bike Coach at Cycling Canada, called the weekend a success. “We’re really pleased with how Vallnord turned out. It’s a tough race and it’s at altitude. Sean and Mackenzie lead the way for the Under-23’s, both finishing 19th. Our Elite women were exceptional, with Emily riding strong to get third, Haley with a best-ever World Cup result and Sandra with a second best-ever finish. We’re pleased and will plan to do even more preparation for this event in the future.”

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CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES NATIONAL SQUAD FOR TOUR DE L’ABITIBI

Val-d’Or, QC (July 10, 2018) – Cycling Canada has announced the team of six riders who will represent Canada at the 2018 Tour de l’Abitibi Junior men’s stage race from July 16-22. The UCI sanctioned Tour de l’Abitibi is the oldest and most prestigious Junior men’s race in North America, and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

A pool of nine riders was selected, based on early season results and the recent National Road Championships. Canadian Road and Time Trial champion Ben Katerberg of British Columbia, an automatic nomination to the Pool, declined his nomination due to a prior commitment to race with his trade team, TaG Cycling, as did his team mate Conor Martin.

The final selection contains riders from British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec, including National Criterium champion Riley Pickrell from Victoria, BC. Also representing B.C. will be Thomas Schellenberg of Chilliwack. From Ontario, Carson Miles of Ottawa will be the time trial specialist, while three riders from Quebec will complete the team – Tristan Jussaume of Contrecoeur, Robin Plamondon of Montreal, and Alex Poirier from Longueuil.

“It’s a pleasure for me to guide these guys through the 50th edition of Abitibi,” said Kevin Field, Road Program Manager at Cycling Canada.  “We’re so thrilled to be in Abitibi for this historic edition and are grateful for the hospitality and support we receive from the entire organization team.”

“The team is well balanced with big horsepower in Miles, Schellenberg and Jussaume, great race-craft from Plamondon and Poirier, and an emerging sprinting talent in Pickrell. All these guys have hit podiums either at Nationals or in the regular season reference races I observed. We can go for GC [General Classification] from opportunistic breaks, hunt stages with Riley, and we have the depth to defend if we’re fortunate enough to take the leader’s jersey. Our main objective going in is to secure Nations Cup points to maximize Canada’s quotas for Road Worlds in Austria.”

Team Canada
Tristan Jussaume – Contrecoeur, QC
Carson Miles – Ottawa, ON
Riley Pickrell – Victoria, BC
Robin Plamondon – Montreal, QC
Alex Poirier – Longueuil, QC
Thomas Schellenberg – Chilliwack, BC

Team Manager – Kevin Field

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EMILY BATTY FINISHES SECOND AT XCO WORLD CUP

Val di Sole, Italy (July 9, 2018) – Canadian women’s XCO champion Emily Batty (Trek Factory) of Brooklin, ON, had one of the strongest rides of her career on Sunday at Round 4 of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Val di Sole, Italy, finishing second, only nine seconds behind winner Maja Wloszczowska of Poland. Canada also had two other riders finish in the top-20 of the Elite women’s race – Sandra Walter (Team Canada) in 18th place and Haley Smith (Norco Factory) in 19th.

National coach Dan Proulx commented, “Emily’s ride was exceptional. She was in it to win it today, and that focus really paid off. She was strong and, as always, tactically savvy. She’s having a good season and will likely improve more as we head toward Worlds. It was great to have three riders in the top 20 in the women’s race. Emily, Sandra and Haley did a great job. That will earn us a significant number of Olympic Qualification points.”

Batty was part of the lead group for the entire race, and led the chase after Wloszczowska attacked with a lap and a half to go in the race, dropping world champion Jolanda Neff of Switzerland. The result is Batty’s second podium of the World Cup season, and moves her up to seventh from tenth in the overall standings.

Batty was both pleased and disappointed with her second place; the third time in her World Cup career that she has finished second as she still tries for her first World Cup win. “I’m not sure yet whether to be happy or really disappointed. After struggling in the early season, it’s pretty exciting to have a good result, but it’s so damn close to that win!  We get another shot in six days [Vallnord, Andorra]. Pauline [Ferrand Prevot of France] and Jolanda did a lot of work at the start and I wasn’t sure where I was at, what I was capable of, so I just tried to play it smart. There was a bit of team tactics when the gap formed and I just wasn’t able to get around [Jolanda]. I was turning myself inside out to bring Maja back and get that win, but I came up a few seconds short.”

In the Elite men’s competition, won by world champion Nino Schurter of Switzerland, Leandre Bouchard (KMC-Ekoi-SR Suntour) of Alma, QC, was the top Canadian in 55th place. In the Under-23 categories, Mackenzie Myatt (Team Canada) of Musquodoboit Harbour, NS, was the top Canadian woman, in 29th, with Sean Fincham (Team Canada) of Squamish, BC, the top man in 30th.

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CANADA WINS 4 GOLD MEDALS AT PARA ROAD WORLD CUP

Emmen, Netherlands (July 9, 2018) – Canada had an extremely successful weekend at Round 2 of the UCI Para-cycling Road World Cup in Emmen, Netherlands, winning a total of six medals, including four gold, and finishing the event ranked fifth among nations.

Three riders won races in their classifications, with world champion Shelley Gautier of Toronto winning both the time trial and road race in the women’s T1 category, and finishing the weekend with the World Cup leader’s jersey. Other gold medal winners were Charles Moreau of Victoriaville, Quebec, in the men’s H3 time trial, and world champion Michael Sametz of Calgary, Alberta, in the men’s C3 time trial. Moreau also leads the World Cup standings in his division after Emmen. At the event, Sametz rode the same distance as the higher class C4 and C5 athletes, and his time would have won the C4 class as well as finishing fourth in the C5 class.

“Friday was a great race,” said Moreau, “I wasn’t expecting to win, with the contenders that were here, but I was definitely aiming for the podium. The course wasn’t too technical and I managed my effort well. This was a good chance to see where the other racers are at before the world championships, so I have good expectations as we get ready for Worlds in Italy.”

Canada also won silver and bronze medals in the time trial competition, with Keely Shaw of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, winning silver in women’s C4, and Nicole Clermont of St Denis de Brompton, Quebec, winning bronze in the women’s C5.

“We are very pleased with the results we had here,” said Sebastien Travers, National Para-cycling Coach. “The first goal was adding to our points from the first World Cup in Belgium and we are now in second place in the Americas, behind the United States. In terms of Paralympic qualifications [for Tokyo 2020], this is a very good situation for us. I’m also very proud of our high performance athletes, who delivered excellent performances, led by Shelley Gautier, who leaves this World Cup with the leader’s jersey, as does Charles Moreau, who won his time trial and is also the World Cup leader. We are looking forward to the next event, which will be the world championships at the beginning of August in Italy.”

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BMX NATIONAL TITLES AWARDED IN DRUMMONDVILLE

Drummondville, QC (July 9, 2018) – Over 400 athletes came out for the premier event on the domestic BMX calendar, the Canadian BMX Championships, which returned to Drummondville after a two year absence. Titles and maple leaf jerseys were awarded in the women’s and men’s categories for Junior (17-18) and Elite (19+) categories, with medals awarded in the Challenge classes for age group racing from as young as 5 years old.

“As expected, Club BMX Drummond offered another first class Canadian Championship event,” said Josh Peacock, Competition Coordinator at Cycling Canada. “We saw plenty of thrills and spills, and are thrilled to crown our new Canadian Champions. Congratulations to all of our N plate winners, and a big thank you to all of the dedicated volunteers and officials who contributed to the success of this event.”

British Columbia, Quebec and Alberta dominated the titles, with each province taking national champions jerseys, including two for Alberta. Aidan Webber of Nanaimo, BC, became the new national champion for Junior men, with Benjamin Ouellette taking the silver medal and Alex Grecht the bronze. In the Junior women, Avriana Hebert of Edmonton, Alberta defended her national title, finishing fourth among the Elite women, followed by Alison Grecht of Parksville, BC.

“Winning the national champion’s jersey really shows all the hard work I’ve put in,” said Webber, “because I was injured last year and missed out on national champs, so getting it in my last year as a Junior really means a lot to me. My final was really good right from the start; I had an amazing gate and was able to get to the inside of the straightaway right away and hold off the competition all the way to the line. It’s a huge confidence booster.”

The Elite women’s title was a battle between two World Cup riders, defending champion Drew Mechielsen of Langley, BC, and Daina Tuchscherer of Chestermere, Alberta, with Tuchscherer taking the title.

“The track was running really great today,” said Tuchscherer.  “All these girls I raced against have trained super hard, so it was awesome to fight my way to the top. I haven’t won this before, so it will be an honour to wear the maple leaf for Canada.”

In the absence of defending champion Tory Nyhaug, who is recovering from an injury, the Elite men’s title was a three-way battle between World Cup riders James Palmer of North Vancouver, BC, Alex Tougas of Pitt Meadows, BC, and local Drummondville favourite Gaby Malenfant. Malenfant managed to slip by Palmer and Tougas in the final corner to take a popular hometown win.

“It was awesome to win at home,” said Malenfant.  “It’s a technical track, with not a lot of speed, so there are a lot of moves happening in the corners but I like technical tracks, so it is an advantage for me.”

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