OLYMPIANS HOULE & JACKSON WIN TIME TRIAL NATIONAL TITLES
Saint-Georges, QC (September 10, 2021) – The 2021 Canadian Road Championships kicked off on Friday with the time trial races for Para, Junior, U23 & Elite categories, where athletes completed distances ranging from 16 to 34 kilometers. With only a handful of the 2019 Canadian champions competing for the maple leaf jersey, multiple titles were up for grabs and only four athletes managed to hold on to their national titles.
The out-and-back course located in Saint-Prosper, on the outskirts of Saint-Georges, offered multiple climbs and was challenging to even the most experienced riders. Astana-Premier Tech’s Hugo Houle completed the 34km course with a time of 41:48.247, 1:39.463 ahead of his closest opponent Alec Cowan (L39Ion Of Los Angeles). Track cyclist Derek Gee (Xspeed United Continental) completed the podium.
“I was 100% on target today. My plan was to come out strong to give myself some wiggle room after the turnaround,” said Houle. “I could see that there was no significant gap with the riders in front of me, so I knew I was doing good time. I really pushed the limit to get the win and didn’t leave anything on the road. It’s always fun to have the [maple leaf] jersey with our professional teams and I especially wanted to win the jersey for my brother.”
Houle’s Olympic teammate Alison Jackson (Liv Racing) also took the win on the women’s side, completing the 28-kilometer course with a time of 39:58.436, more than 43 seconds in front of 2019 bronze medallist Marie-Soleil Blais. Gillian Ellsay (Instafund Racing), who finished third in 2019 as a U23, won the bronze medal.
“I had a very specific plan on pacing and went out a little strong, but I just felt really good,” said Jackson. “I just had a lot of confidence right to the turnaround and back so I was hopeful that it could produce a win. Being able to focus on the time trial will mean good things for the next Olympic cycle and it’ll be really cool to be able to wear the maple leaf jersey in the next year.”
Riders from Quebec swept the podium in the U23 and Junior categories, with siblings Tristan and Laurie Jussaume winning both U23 titles, while Leonard Peloquin and Jazmine Lavergne finished first in the Junior races. The para-cycling competitions saw titles awarded in five different categories, four of which were won by 2019 Canadian champions Marie-Claude Molnar, Charles Moreau, Louis-Albert Corriveau Jolin and Lowell Taylor.
Tomorrow, Canada’s Junior women will tackle the road race at 8:30am EST, followed by the Elite men at 12:00pm EST. Full results and schedules can be found here.
Results
T1-2 Women & Men: 1- Louis-Albert Corriveau Jolin 2- Michael Shetler 3- Thuy Do
H1-5 Women & Men: 1- Charles Moreau 2- Joey Desjardins 3- Matthew Kinnie
C1-5 Women & C1-3 Men: 1- Marie-Claude Molnar, 2- Catharine Konopelky 3- Adam Purdy
Tandem: 1- Lowell Taylor & Ed Veal 2- Carla Shibley & Meghan Lemisky 3- Benoit Lalumière Cloutier & Maximilien Moreau
C4-5 Men: 1- Piotr Czyzowicz 2- Lachlan Hotchkiss
Junior Women: 1- Jazmine Lavergne 2- Pénélope Primeau 3- Mairen Lawson
Junior Men: 1- Leonard Peloquin 2- Campbell Parish 3- Gavin Hadfield
U23 Women: 1- Laurie Jussaume 2- Ruby West 3- Dana Gilligan
U23 Men: 1- Tristan Jussaume 2- Ethan Sittlington 3- Carson Miles
Elite Women: 1- Alison Jackson 2- Marie-Soleil Blais 3- Gillian Ellsay
Elite Men: 1- Hugo Houle 2- Alec Cowan 3- Derek Gee
