September 16/15 18:14 pm - Cycling Canada Announces Road Worlds Squad

Posted by Editor on 09/16/15
 

Cycling Canada is pleased to announce the athletes that have been selected to represent Canada at the upcoming UCI Road World Championships.

These Championships will take place on September 20-27 in Richmond (Virginia), USA.

Canada secured six starters for both the Elite men and Elite women road races, as well as four starters in the U23 men and each Junior category, a historical high for the country at this event.

The Elite men's team is highlighted by Guillaume Boivin, the Canadian Road Champion and Pan-Am Games bronze medallist. Hugo Houle, who races for the WorldTour team AG2R La Mondiale, is the Pan-Am Games Gold medalist and Canadian Time Trial Champion. Antoine Duchesne, Ryan Anderson, Ryan Roth and future WorldTour rider Michael Woods will also be providing Canada with strength in the road race.

"We have a strong team heading into Richmond. Our guys are in top form, and with six starters Canada can contend for a top result," said Kevin Field, Cycling Canada's Men's Road Program Manager.

WorldTour riders Ryder Hesjedal and Svein Tuft were both selected to the team, however they respectfully declined their invitations, allowing other Canadian riders the opportunity to race against the world's best riders. Field added to this topic: "We respect the difficult decision taken by Ryder and Svein to decline their invitations after long, tough seasons. Communication has been excellent amongst our national team riders this season; their commitment to the long-term growth Canadian cycling is extremely appreciated. I feel cohesion and collaboration with all our athletes - those going to Richmond and those who aren't are all in a very good place."

In the women's events, Joelle Numainville, a multiple times Canadian Champion (including 2015), will add fire power to the very technical and punchy road race. Leah Kirchmann, who won two stages of the 2015 Tour of California, finishing second in the general classification, will be amongst the top riders in the field. In 2014, Kirchmann finished third at La Course, the women's Tour de France.

In the time trial, Karol-Ann Canuel posted a sixth place at the 2014 edition and will have an eye to finish in a top spot in the event. Tara Whitten is continuing her comeback quest towards qualifying for the upcoming Olympic Games in 2016 and will race the time trial.

Denise Kelly, at the helm of the Women's Road Program, is equally as excited about the athletes headed to Richmond. "A solid team has been selected for the Elite women category. It is represented by a mixture of experienced riders and newcomers with enough savvy and technical ability to provide an exciting outcome in the road race."

Four of the six - Canuel, Annie Ewart, Alison Jackson and Leah Kirchmann  - will be contesting the team time trial (TTT) with their professional teams, with Canuel looking to repeat as World TTT Champion.

A Top-10 result in the individual time trial for both men and women Elite races will qualify Canada a maximum of one additional spot in the event for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. An athlete posting a Top-5 result in the Elite individual time trial event will earn automatic selection to the Rio 2016 Canadian Cycling Team.

In the U23 and Junior categories, Luc Arseneau, Road Development Coach, is looking for some strong performances by the young Canadians. "I'm very happy with the U23 selection. We have an experienced team this year. These boys have been racing together for a good period of time, and we could expect positive results from them."

The U23 riders selected to the team have performed really well this year across the UCI America Tour. Ben Perry, the reigning Canadian Champion in the category, recently won the KOM at the Tour of Alberta and enjoyed a tremendous season with his trade team, Silber Pro Cycling. Alex Cataford, who took the time trial title at the Global Relay Canadian Championships, is also fresh off a good season. Sean MacKinnon, bronze medalist at the Pan-American Games in the time trial and Track Pan-Am Championships triple medalist, will be racing the time trial.

U23 Men
Alex Cataford (Ottawa, ON/Silber Pro Cycling) [TT]
Adam De Vos (Victoria, BC/H&R Block Pro Cycling)
Nigel Ellsay (Victoria, BC/Silber Pro Cycling)
Sean Mackinnon (Hamilton, ON/Canadian National Team) [TT only]
Benjamin Perry (St. Catharines, ON/Silber Pro Cycling)

Elite Women
Karol-Ann Canuel (Gatineau, QC/ Velocio-SRAM) [TT]
Annie Ewart (Victoria, BC/Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies)
Alison Jackson (Abbotsford, BC/Twenty16-ShoAir)
Leah Kirchmann (Winnipeg, MB/Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies)
Joëlle Numainville (Montreal, QC/Bigla Pro Cycling)
Denise Ramsden (Yellowknife, NT/Trek-Red Truck p/b Mosaic Homes)
Tara Whitten (Edmonton, AB/The Cyclery-Opus) [TT only]

Elite Men
Ryan Anderson (Vancouver, BC/Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies)
Guillaume Boivin (Longueuil, QC/Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies)
Antoine Duchesne (Québec, QC/Team Europcar)
Hugo Houle (Ste-Perpétue, QC/AG2R La Mondiale) [TT]
Ryan Roth (Guelph, ON/Silber Pro Cycling) [TT]
Michael Woods (Ottawa, ON/Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies)

Cycling Canada press release - edited

Note:  The Junior team was previously announced Here