January 3/15 22:56 pm - Track Nationals: Day one report
Posted by Editor on 01/3/15
Day 1 of the 2014 Canadian National Track Championships saw four national titles contested in the team events, the first to be awarded at the new Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario.
In the Team Sprint competition, the Alberta-based women's squad of Monique Sullivan and Kate O'Brien, racing for Team PCL, bested Team Ontario's Candice Vermeulen and Sara Byers to take the first ever title awarded in the new velodrome. The Real Deal/Gears team of Krista Ruby and Kristen Sears took the bronze medal.
"It's pretty phenomenal to be here today," said Sullivan. "We've never had a facility like this in Canada. It felt like we were in Europe! It's kind of surreal to have such a beautiful track to race on."
In the men's Team Sprint competition, the Ontario-based Comp Sprint Group of Evan Carey, Joseph Veloce and Chris Singleton won gold, ahead of Equipe de Quebec (Guillaume Roussel, Joel Archambault and Joachim Albert). Composite BC/TIN (Jacob Schwingboth/Keith Bruneau/Khyl Orser) took the bronze.
The women's Team Pursuit title was taken by Cycling BC squad of Stephanie Roorda, Jasmin Glaesser, Laura Brown and Brenna Pauly, beating the Trek Red Truck squad (Kinley Gibson, Allison Beveridge, Sarah Mason and Sarah Coney). Equipe de Quebec (Catherine Dessurealt, Kirsti Lay, Alizee Brien and Marie Soleil Blais) took bronze.
"We just wanted to have a smooth ride," explained Roorda. "We knew that we could beat [Trek Red Truck], but it's always great to win. It doesn't matter the level, you want to win."
"The track is pretty amazing," said Glaesser, "I had to remind myself that I wasn't in Europe. To be in front of a home crowd, and to know that we are going to have this facility to grow as a team, it's pretty special to be a part of that. I'm definitely excited. It's my first ever national title, so it couldn't be at a better place."
The final title of the evening was awarded in the men's Team Pursuit, with Team Moose (Aidan Caves, Sean MacKinnon, Ed Veal and Remi Pelletier Roy) taking gold, ahead of Silber Pro Cycling (Alexander Cataford, Ryan Roth, Matteo Dal-Cin and Benjamin Perry). Team NCCH (Adam Jamieson, Simon Fothergill, William Elliott and Jack Burke).
"It's great to be riding here and to win, here," said Pelletier Roy. "Our home base was in LA [Los Angeles] before this, so to have won here in Canada is pretty incredible."
Racing continues tomorrow through Tuesday.
Results
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