(St. Félicien, QC – June 16, 2012) Under a blazing sun in St. Félicien, Catharine Pendrel of Kamloops, BC won her fourth consecutive title, while Max Plaxton confirmed its superiority on Saturday at the Canadian Mountain Bike Cross Country Championships.
Catharine Pendrel, the world champion in the discipline, won her first Canadian title four years ago, here in St. Felicien, and has since been virtually untouchable at these Canadian Championships.
Marie-Helene Premont of Chateau Richer, Quebec, won the silver medal, while Emily Batty of Brooklin, Ontario, crossed the finish line in third place.
In the men’s race, the battle would was anticipated to be between the defending Canadian champion Max Plaxton and seven-time Canadian champion Geoff Kabush. Finally, after an early attack by Geoff Kabush right from the gun, Plaxton was able to comeback in the fourth lap and take the command of the race until the very end.
Kabush finished the race second, while Derek Zandra lit the engines on the last lap and snuck in third place.
In the U23 category, Andréanne Pichette and Léandre Bouchard were the fastest of the day. Pichette won the Canadian title, rebounding after breaking her chain in the first round and losing significant ground to the group. Bouchard, who was the top U23 rider of the Canada Cup standings, won the men’s race flying on the last lap to win the coveted title.
In the Junior races, both defending Canadian Champions Frederique Trudel and Marc-Antoine Nadon, easily won their respective races. Trudel also won the Canada Cup series this year, while Nadon finished second in the series, tied with the champion.
Tomorrow, the team relay races and the Masters races will be presented.
The event here in St-Félicien is presented by the Velo2max mountain bike club, led by Martin Demers. The club hosted the 2009 Canadian Championships, as well as the 2007 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup. The course in St-Félicien is adored by the riders.
RESULTS – 2012 CANADIAN MOUNTAIN BIKE CHAMPIONSHIPS – ST. FÉLICIEN, QC
WOMEN CADET (U17)
1. ARSENEAULT, Laurie (CVM 2 VALS) 41:45
2. MEEUWISSE, Soren (Team Ontario/Hardwood) 42:27
3. LEWIS, Marine (Scott Pure Power) 43:19
MEN CADET (U17)
1. FORTIER, Marc-André (Scott Pure Power) 50:33
2. AUCLAIR, Raphael (CVM Subway-Génétik) 51:40
3. PELLETIER, Francis (Vélo 2 Max (St-Félicien)) 52:02
WOMEN JUNIOR (U19)
1. TRUDEL, Frédérique (Specialized-Québec) 01:01:17
2. PAGEAU, Rachel (Cyclone d’Alma) 1:04:24
3. LAROSE-GINGRAS, Frédérique (CVM Subway-Génétik) 1:06:03
MEN JUNIOR (U19)
1. NADON, Marc-Antoine (SCOTT-3RoxRacing) 1:07:41
2. VIALLE, Alexandre (Équipe du Québec / SCOTT-Pure Power) 1:09:24
3. DISERA, Peter (Team Ontario/Cycle Solutions) 1:09:51
WOMEN ESPOIRS (U23)
1. PICHETTE, Andréanne (Opus/OGC) 1:22:40
2. LANTHIER-NADEAU, Andréanne (Rocky Mountain Factory) 1:24:01
3. BIETOLA, Laura (SCOTT-3RoxRacing) 1:24:54
MEN ESPOIRS (U23)
1. BOUCHARD Léandre (Cyclone d’Alma/Devinci) 1:22:32
2. BAILEY Mitch (Team Ontario–Trek) 1:23:19
3. MARTIN Jérémy (Rocky Mountain) 1:23:43
WOMEN ELITE
1. PENDREL, Catharine (Luna Pro Team) 1:30:22
2. PRÉMONT, Marie-Hélène (Rocky Mountain) 1:31:36
3. BATTY, Emily (Subaru-Trek) 1:32:59
MEN ELITE
- © Peter Kraiker/kraikerphoto.com
1. PLAXTON, Max (Specialized Factory) 1:32:48
2. KABUSH, (SCOTT-3Rox) 1:33:30
3. ZANDSTRA, Derek (SCOTT-3RoxRacing) 1:36:36