News – Page 87 – Cycling Canada Cyclisme

TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE TISSOT UCI TRACK CYCLING WORLD CUP IN MILTON

Milton, September 14, 2017 – The TISSOT UCI Track Cycling World Cup is coming to Milton! Ticket sales and volunteer registration are now open for the Canadian round of the Track World Cup that will be held from December 1-3, 2017 at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre. This is your opportunity to participate in a historic event and watch Team Canada take on the world.

Until October 1st, tickets are 20% off (excluding VIP) for all sessions, including the sought-after evening sessions when medals will be awarded. Spectators can choose between single tickets for each session in either general or premium seats, an event pass for all sessions or a family pack (2 adults, 2 youth). For exclusive access, act quickly to obtain one of 50 VIP passes for evening sessions only – these will give access to the infield, premium seats, parking at the velodrome, plus food and beverages.

All prices and links can be found at https://www.twcmilton.com/tickets/.

For information on detailed event schedules and volunteer registration, please visit https://www.twcmilton.com/event-info. Media registration will be available shortly.

“With the growth of Track Cycling across the country and the great performances from our national track teams, the timing could not be better to host the World in Milton for the Tissot UCI Track World Cup,” said Mathieu Boucher, Performance Development Director at Cycling Canada. “Cycling Canada is proud to have the support of the Town of Milton, the Government of Ontario, Sport Canada and an amazing group of dedicated volunteers in delivering this event. We are setting the stage to enable athlete performances and to deliver world class cycling for the community and the cycling fans.”

September 14, 2017/by Communications

CYCLING CANADA ANNOUNCES ELITE MEN’S SQUAD FOR ROAD WORLDS

Ottawa, September 13, 2017 – Cycling Canada is pleased to announce the final members of Team Canada for the Road World Championships in Bergen, Norway. The selection for the Elite men’s competition in both the road race and individual time trial was made following the World Tour races held last weekend in Quebec City and Montreal. The teams for the Elite and Junior women, plus the Under-23 and Junior men, were announced previously.

Four riders have been chosen, with two competing in the individual time trial on Wednesday, September 18th, and three in the road race on Sunday, September 24th.

Rob Britton of Regina, Saskatchewan, will focus on the time trial, and is coming off his strongest season to-date. The professional rider with Rally Cycling won the overall title in the Tour of Utah this season, including a time trial stage win. Britton will be joined in the time trial by Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpetue, Quebec, a member of the AG2R La Mondiale WorldTour team. Houle comes to the world championships from the Vuelta a Espana, one of the three Grand Tours of cycling, and will also compete in the road race.

Joining Houle in the road race will be two more European-based professional riders – Antoine Duchesne of Saguenay, Quebec, and Guillaume Boivin of Montreal, Quebec. Duchesne was the top Canadian finisher at the GP Cycliste de Montreal last weekend, while Boivin was the top Canadian at the GP Cycliste de Quebec last Friday.

Kevin Field, Road Manager at Cycling Canada, said, “We have a really strong squad going into Road Worlds, not only with our Elites but also with our Junior and Under-23 riders. This past weekend at GPCQM [Quebec and Montreal WorldTour races] has been great preparation for our Elite men and we are looking forward to seeing them work together for the road race.”

September 13, 2017/by Communications

MELVIN TO LEAVE CYCLING CANADA FOR JAPAN

Milton, September 13, 2017 – Ian Melvin is departing the helm of Cycling Canada’s Men’s Track Endurance Program to help Japan qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

As of October 2nd, Melvin will join the Japan Cycling Federation as Head Track Endurance Coach. Working from Izu, Japan, home of the track cycling events at the 2020 Olympic Games, Melvin’s main focus will be to lead both Japanese men’s and women’s track endurance programs to 2020 Olympic qualification and to create long term high performance pathways for the country.

“I am incredibly proud of what I have been a part of creating since I joined Cycling Canada. Leaving behind my team of athletes and staff has been the toughest decision I’ve ever had to make professionally. As a program, we have achieved some wonderful performances and results, laying down a strong foundation for this group to continue building upon towards their goal of 2020 Olympic qualification. I count myself privileged to have been a part of Canadian history alongside these riders and will carry with me some wonderful memories for life.”

“I’d like to thank Jacques [Landry, Chief Technical Officer – Head Coach at Cycling Canada] for having the faith in me and supporting me for the last four and a half years. Many Performance Directors wouldn’t have had the confidence, but he let me run with my ideas and continued to back me. With ongoing support from Jacques and Cycling Canada, I am confident that this program can continue to build and impress the world.”

“Lastly, I would like to say a big thank you to my riders; those that I am working with currently and everyone who has come through the program. Despite the challenges and hurdles that we have faced, you have never given up and continue to prove people wrong. You’ve grown so much, not only as athletes but as young men, and the daily camaraderie is something that I’ve never experienced anywhere else before. You are truly an example for the next generations to follow and I am honoured to have shared in part of your journey.”

During his tenure as Men’s Track Endurance Coach at Cycling Canada, Ian Melvin was able to take a program that was hovering around the 4:14 mark in the men’s Team Pursuit Event, and shave off 15 seconds in the span of 3 years. Melvin accomplished this feat by creating a high performance environment underpinned by a solid road program, great technical work on the track and surrounding himself with key support staff.

“Ian came to Cycling Canada in June of 2013 with a white canvas to work from, but with very little funds. It is pretty impressive to see what he was able to accomplish during that 4 year span,” said Jacques Landry. “It’s unfortunate to lose Ian just as our program was gaining real momentum but at the same time, when a program like our men’s track endurance program makes gains like it has, it is normal that other countries want the architect of that program. It’s part of the game. My only consolation with losing Ian is that we must be doing something right if other countries are looking at what we are doing and want to emulate.”

With Melvin leaving his position as Head Men’s Track Endurance Coach, Cycling Canada will be publishing a job posting shortly, with the hope of having a replacement in place for November; one month out from the hosting of a Track World Cup at the National Cycling Centre in Milton.

September 13, 2017/by Communications

DUCHESNE TOP CANADIAN AT GP CYCLISTE DE MONTREAL

Montreal, September 12, 2017 – Antoine Duchesne of Team Canada was the top Canadian rider on Sunday at the GP Cycliste de Montreal WorldTour race, finishing 42nd in a chase group that also included Guillaume Boivin (Israel Cycling Academy). Italy’s Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) won the 206 kilometre race from a six rider breakaway group.

The race, which featured 17 laps of the classic Mont Royal circuit through the center of Montreal, saw two Canadian riders attack from the gun. Canadian road champion Matteo Dal-Cin (Team Canada) and Benjamin Perry (Israel Cycling Academy) quickly opened a two minute gap, which fluctuated to as much as five and a half minutes over the next seven laps before an attack from the peloton by world champion and GP Cycliste de Quebec winner Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) caused a surge which brought the duo back after 120 kilometres. Both Duchesne and Boivin were involved in attacks, but each was neutralized, with no Canadians making the final break of six. In addition to Duchesne’s 42nd, Boivin was 51st, and Team Canada riders Jack Burke and Bruno Langlois were 90th and 97th, respectively.

Team Canada manager Kevin field commented, “I’m really happy with the collaboration in the field today and with the way the guys rode. I think Antoine and Guillaume did a great job at the front. It was definitely one of the harder Montréal races I’ve seen, but overall it was a great preparation for our Under-23 men before Road Worlds next week.”

September 12, 2017/by Communications

CANADA’S MIRANDA MILLER WINS WORLD DOWNHILL TITLE

Cairns, AUS, September 10, 2017 – Canada concluded the Mountain Bike World Championships in Cairns, Australia, on Sunday, with a world championship title for Miranda Miller of Squamish, BC, in the Elite women’s category. It is the first Elite Downhill world title for Canada since Cindy Devine won in 1990, the first year of the mountain bike world championships (and the year Miller was born).

The Elite women’s field suffered a blow when defending champion Rachel Atherton of Great Britain broke her collarbone in training. However, this left the door open to a new world champion to be crowned, and it was Miranda Miller, having the ride of her career, who took the rainbow jersey. Starting eighth from last, Miller had a clean run, and that proved to be the key when the favourites ran into problems. World Cup champion Myriam Nicole of France won the silver medal and Tracey Hannah of Australia the bronze. Vaea Verbeeck, Canada’s only other entrant in Elite women, finished 16th.

“It’s pretty crazy,” admitted Miller. “I don’t think it has sunk in yet. I feel like I had some luck on my side, but I’ll take it. It’s pretty cool. I’m sure in a couple days it will feel a bit different. I thought Tahnee (Seagrave) was going to knock me out. But I had some luck on my side for sure. When Myriam (Nicole) came down I thought ‘Oh, this is real’. For Canada, we haven’t had a [downhill] medal since Stevie [Smith, 2013] and Claire [Buchar, 2011], so it is cool. We got a medal in the Junior XC as well, so it’s great for Canada.”

Canada got off to a disappointing start for the day when defending Junior men’s champion and number one ranked Finnley Iles of Whistler, BC, crashed twice on his run to finish tenth. Matt Walker of Great Britain became the Junior men’s champion. Other Canadian Junior results were Kendall Mclean in 23rd, Ben Wallace in 25th, Jacob Stefiuk in 37th, Joshua Fultz-Veinotte in 41st, Anthony Poulson in 46th and Cole Mooney in 47th.

In the Elite men’s category, Canada’s top finisher was Samuel Thibault in 53rd, followed by Mark Wallace, ranked ninth but finishing a disappointing 54th after crashing near the bottom of the course.

Canada finished the world championships with two medals – Miller’s gold and Holden Jones’ bronze in the Junior men’s cross-country.

September 10, 2017/by Communications

BOIVIN FINISHES WITH LEADERS AT GP QUEBEC

Quebec, September 9, 2017 – Guillaume Boivin (Israel Cycling Academy) was the top Canadian finisher on Friday at the GP Cycliste de Quebec, in Quebec City, finishing with the lead group in 29th place. World champion Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) recorded his 100th professional victory, holding off Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) and Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) in a sprint after 201 kilometres of racing.

Bruno Langlois was the top rider for Team Canada in 52nd, finishing 17 seconds back. Other Canadian results were 56th Antoine Duchesne (Team Canada), 77th Jack Burke (Team Canada), 99th Ryan Anderson (Team Canada), 107th Matteo Dal-Cin (Team Canada), 141st Benjamin Perry (Israel Cycling Academy).

Team Canada manager Kevin Field said, “I feel like we achieved about 50% of our plan. The good thing about these races is that it provides an opportunity to give experience to our riders who are not on the WorldTour. For sure, there were some mistakes, but they can be turned into a positive learning experience for the young guys.”

The 12.6 kilometre circuit took riders along the St Lawrence River and through the Old Town of Quebec City, with two climbs on each of the 16 laps. Despite rain during the week, and forecasts of rain, race day was dry and sunny.

A small breakaway of four riders went clear halfway into the first lap. Tyler Williams (Israel Cycling Academy) launched the attack and was quickly joined by Pier-Andre Cote (Team Canada), Baptist Planckaert (Katusha Alpecin) and Tosh Van Der Sane (Lotto Soudal). The gap had grown to over nine minutes after 40 kilometres of racing, when the peloton finally began to chase, but they had only pulled back a minute by the 100 kilometre mark. At 16 kilometres to go the final rider – Planckaert – was caught, with the peloton together at the start of the final lap. Sagan went to the front in the final 150 metres, leading the remainder of the field across the finish line.

September 9, 2017/by Communications

BATTY 7TH AT MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Cairns, AUS, September 9, 2017 – Cross-country competition at the Mountain Bike World Championships in Cairns, Australia, concluded on Saturday with the final three titles awarded. Canada’s top result was by Emily Batty of Brooklin, Ontario, in seventh place in the Elite women’s competition.

Team Canada Head Coach Dan Proulx, summarized the project positively: “We had a great Worlds team this year – new energy and enthusiasm! The highlight was Holden Jones’s bronze medal! The team really impressed me with their effort level. They gave everything. Amongst our team there were several massive improvements in performance – Haley Smith, Marc Andre Fortier, Quinton Disera, Soren Meeuwisse, Andrew L’Esperance. Overall, it was a race where at least one Canadian in every category was strong and competitive. That bodes well for the future. The ones who performed best are just getting started in their careers as high performance athletes.”

Batty and Pendrel were part of the initial lead group in the Elite women’s race, which was eventually won by Jolanda Neff of Switzerland. Batty settled into seventh, which she held to the finish, although a crash on the final descent led to a sprint finish with Corina Gantenbein of Switzerland. Haley Smith continued her strong season since joining the Elite ranks, with a steady climb from the mid-30s to finish 16th. Catharine Pendrel was 27^th, Sandra Walter was 30th, Cindy Montambault 37th and Rebecca Beaumont 41st.

“I don’t know what to think,” admitted Smith. “I’ve never been inside the top-20 before and to do a top-20 … I know it’s not a podium result, but it’s absolutely huge for me, so I don’t know how to process it. But I’m really happy! I had a crappy start loop and actually crashed in the first couple of laps, but I just stayed focussed and moved through people. I couldn’t have hoped for a season this good; this is a big jump for me, and I’m very happy to end the year on this note.”

Leandre Bouchard was Canada’s top performer in the Elite men’s race, finishing 24th. Andrew L’Esperance was 44th, Derek Zandstra 45th, Evan McNeely 46th and Raphael Gagne 52nd.

“I was pretty lucky on the start,” said Bouchard, “I had some space to move up and the start was really important. So I was able to move up quickly and then protect my place. I’m really happy with this race because I had almost no errors; it was the most dusty race of my life! You are just eating dust by the first lap. I did my first top-20 in the World Cup here last year, so I knew I could do well, and so I was looking for a top-25. It’s good to end the season like this.”

In the Under-23 women’s race, Soren Meeuwisse was the top Canadian, in 16th place after moving up steadily all race. Anne Julie Tremblay suffered mechanical problems on the start loop and finished 23rd.

September 9, 2017/by Communications

FORTIER 12TH IN U23 MEN AT MTB WORLDS

Cairns, AUS, September 8, 2017 – Canada had two riders in the top-20 in the U23 men’s cross-country race on Friday at the Mountain Bike World Championships in Cairns, Australia, with Marc-Andre Fortier of Victoriaville, Quebec, finishing 12th and Quinton Disera of Horseshoe Valley, Ontario, finishing 17th. Sam Gaze of New Zealand successfully defended his title, with Alan Hatherly of South Africa taking the silver medal and Maximilian Brandl of Germany the bronze.

A group of 14 riders had split from the main field by the end of the start loop, as the riders headed out for six laps of the 4.3 kilometre circuit through the rainforest at Smithfield Park. The group included Quinton Disera, with Fortier eight seconds behind, along with Peter Disera.

Quinton Disera, a first year Under-23 rider, held onto a top-12 place through the first four laps before fading slightly in the final two laps. Fortier worked his way up from a start position on the sixth row to top-20 by the end of the start loop and into the top-15 by the end of the third lap. For the final two laps he was in a three-way battle for tenth.

“It was amazing, I didn’t have any problems all race,” said Fortier. “I started 48th and by the end of the start loop I had moved up a lot; an amazing day for me. Usually I prefer courses with shorter punchy climbs like Mont Ste-Anne, and here it was a long climb. So it was not the perfect course for me, but today it was perfect! It’s a good way to end the season, so for the winter I will have lots of motivation to train.”

Peter Disera was in the top-15 as the race entered the third lap, but suffered a flat, dropping him back to the mid-20s, where he finished in 24th place. Canadian Under-23 champion Sean Fincham of Squamish, BC, starting near the back of the field, moved up steadily in the first half of the race and then maintained 33rd place for the finish. Raphael Auclair of Haute-Saint-Charles, Quebec, had moved up to the mid-30s before a twisted chain forced him into the pits on Lap 2, and he finished 60th.

September 8, 2017/by Communications

CANADA WINS FIRST MEDAL AT MTB WORLDS

Cairns, AUS, September 7, 2017 – Canada won its first medal of the 2017 Mountain Bike Championships on Thursday in Cairns, Australia, with Holden Jones of Squamish, BC, finishing third in the Junior Men’s competition. Roxane Vermette of St-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Quebec, was the top Canadian in the Junior women’s race, finishing 16th.

The men’s five lap race saw Australia’s Cameron Wright ride away from the rest of the field on the start loop to give the host nation their first title. Behind, the chase quickly came down to two riders – Holden Jones and Joel Roth of Switzerland, a member of the Team Relay world champion squad. The pair had dropped the rest of the chasers by the end of the first lap and rode together until the final half lap, when Roth attacked to open a nine second gap on Jones and win the silver medal.

In other Canadian results, Tyler Clark of King City, Ontario, was 27th and Gunnar Holmgren of Orillia, Ontario, 29th. National champion Brody Sanderson (Oro Medonte, Ontario) pulled out after a crash.

“I think after riding the Relay yesterday and looking at the lap times, that I was there with the faster Juniors,” said Jones. “That really gave me some confidence. That removed from stress from under me and I just did what I knew I could do, and it all worked out. It caught everyone off guard when [Wright] went so quick. The rest of the race was us just trying to hunt him down, but he was on fire today. It’s pretty unbelievable, this is my best race of the year, maybe of my life. I couldn’t be more proud to show the world that Canada is on the map.”

In the Junior women’s category, Canadian champion Vermette rode consistently in the mid-teens throughout the four lap race, finishing five minutes and 32 seconds behind winner Laura Stigger of Austria. In other Canadian results, Dana Gilligan of Oro Medonte, Ontario, was 20th and Leya Masson of St-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Quebec, was 23rd. Sidney McGill of Edmonton, Alberta, was unable to start after injuring her wrist in training.

“It’s my first year as a Junior and my first world championships, so I’m very proud of what I did today,” said Vermette. “I had no idea what I could do, so my plan was to just go hard on the hill and smooth on the technical section. But I didn’t have a lot of energy in the last lap, so I just did my best. My season has been awesome, so when I came to Australia it has been a dream already and I just tried to do my best.”

September 7, 2017/by Communications

CANADA TENTH IN TEAM RELAY AT MTB WORLDS

Cairns, AUS, September 6, 2017 – Team Canada opened the Mountain Bike World Championships in Cairns, Australia, with a tenth place performance on Wednesday in the Team Relay. Switzerland won the title ahead of Denmark and France.

For 2017 the Team Relay made a significant change to the format, adding a fifth rider to each team. Now, each squad must include a Junior or Under-23 woman, in addition to an Elite man and woman, Under-23 man and Junior man.

Canada started with Under-23 rider Peter Disera, who got caught up in traffic on the opening lap and finished 11th, 46 seconds behind New Zealand. Raphael Gagne, Canada’s Elite man, moved up significantly on the second lap to put Canada into fifth place as he handed off to Junior man Holden Jones, who put in a blazing lap to move Canada into the lead as he handed off to Elite woman Catharine Pendrel.

Pendrel extended Canada’s lead to a minute going into the final lap as she handed off to Under-23 woman Anne-Julie Tremblay. However, Tremblay faced an impossible task, with Olympic and reigning world champion Nino Schurter leading a group of Elite and Under-23 men after her.

“Our strategy first and foremost was to give each rider a chance to do a dress rehearsal on the course,” explained Dan Proulx, Mountain Bike Head Coach at Cycling Canada. “Our second goal was to be top eight, but with the new format we weren’t sure how it would play out and now we know we are top-10 at this time. Raph [Gagne] had a really good ride to get us into top five and then Holden Jones had the most amazing ride; he just did a stellar job. Our last rider was Anne-Julie, and we gave her the toughest job you could imagine, with eight or ten of the best men right behind her. She rode her heart out. So, overall we were a little short on our objective goal, but it was still a phenomenal start to Worlds for us.”

September 6, 2017/by Communications