Canada had a strong start in Round 2 of the Tissot UCI Track World Cup at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario, on Thursday. Both the women’s and men’s squads qualified for the next round of competition in the Team Pursuit, with the women finishing fifth and the men fourth, while setting a new Canadian record in their ride.
The Canadian women’s team of Ariane Bonhomme, Annie Foreman-Mackey, Kinley Gibson and Stephanie Roorda set a time of four minutes and 23.337 seconds for 4000 metres, 4.375 seconds behind Great Britain, the fastest qualifier and world record holders. Canada’s NextGen development team, racing as Pedal 2 the Medal, finished 12th.
Photo Rob Jones/Canadian Cyclist (All Rights Reserved) – Women’s Team Pursuit
“Overall, we’re pretty happy with our qualifying ride,” said Gibson. “We executed technically pretty well; historically, the first ride has been tough for us in execution. Today, everyone stepped up and did their job. The time was pretty much right what we were shooting for; we’re trying some new stuff this year and this was a bit of a trial, so we are happy with the time.”
In the men’s competition, the Canadian team of Michael Foley, Derek Gee, Adam Jamieson and Jay Lamoureux set the early fast time of three minutes and 56.931 seconds, over 1.5 seconds faster than the previous record, set by the same four riders last year at this World Cup. The Huub Wattbike Test Team of Great Britain set the fastest time, 0.303 seconds ahead of Canada. Canada’s NextGen development team, racing as Pedal 2 the Medal, finished 13th.
Photo Rob Jones/Canadian Cyclist (All Rights Reserved) – Men’s Team Pursuit
“It was really exciting,” said Foley. “We went out with an idea of a time, and this was at the lower end of the range. Everyone’s riding well right now, so hopefully the boys will attack it in the next ride. I think we knew we had it in us, and we were pretty confident but, it’s one thing to think you have it in you, and another to actually do it. Even though it’s only a couple of seconds, it’s a big jump for us.”
About Cycling Canada
Cycling Canada is the governing body for competitive cycling in Canada. With the vision of becoming a leading competitive cycling nation, 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, lululemon, 4iiii, Argon18 and Bear Mountain Resort – along with the Government of Canada, Own The Podium, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee.