Maggie Coles-Lyster of Maple Ridge, BC, became the first Canadian rider to win a world title at the 2017 UCI Track Cycling World Championships on August 26th, in Montichiari, Italy, with her victory in the women’s Points Race. It was Coles-Lyster‘s second medal, after winning silver a day earlier in the Omnium event.
Coles-Lyster was one of six riders to gain a lap on the field in the 80 lap race, and also won intermediate sprints in four of eight sprints for a total of 41 points. Marii Novolodskaya of Russia finished a distant second with 29 points, tied with Chiara Consonni of Italy.
“It’s unreal,” admitted Coles-Lyster. “I’ve been dreaming about this, I could see it in my mind and I knew I could do it today. I was hoping it would happen in the Omnium, but after the silver medal, I knew I wouldn’t be happy leaving the Worlds without the Rainbow stripes. I just went into it to have fun, because the more I do, the better I race. So I was just trying to enjoy myself.”
In the other Canadian action on Saturday, Laurie Jussaume of Contrecoeur, QC finished sixth in the Individual Pursuit and Erin Attwell of Victoria, BC, was eighth. Both beat the previous Canadian record, with Jussaume setting a new record of two minutes and 24.838 seconds. Michael Foley of Milton, ON, competed in the Men’s Omnium, but did not advance past the qualifying round.
Source: Cycling Canada
About Cycling Canada
Cycling Canada is the governing body for competitive cycling in Canada. Founded in 1882, Cycling Canada aims to create and sustain an effective system that develops talented Canadian cyclists to achieve Olympic, Paralympic, and World Championship medal performances. With the vision of being a leading competitive cycling nation by 2020 celebrating enhanced international success, increased national participation and world class event hosting, Cycling Canada manages the High Performance team, hosts national and international events and administers programs to promote and grow cycling across the country. Cycling Canada programs are made possible through the support of its valued corporate partners – Global Relay, Lexus Canada, Mattamy Homes, Louis Garneau and Bear Mountain Resort – along with the Government of Canada, Own The Podium, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee.