January 7/23 7:18 am - Gord Fraser Joins TaG Cycling for 2023

Posted by Editoress on 01/7/23
 

Returning as TaG Head Sports Director is former Pro Gillian Ellsay, and to top off the team, we are excited to announce the addition of Gordon Fraser as the Director Sportif.

This is a Canadian dream team in management for the riders. They have had progressively developed direction every year. Gillian is coming back to the program with valuable director's experience in Europe and North America.

She is now joined by Gord Fraser, one of the most experienced and successful North American directors currently active in the sport.

Gord raced with some of the biggest Pro teams in the world, including Motorola, and has been directing some of Canada's most winning teams for the past 15 years, including head road director for Canada at the 2012 London Games. Gord has always taken a huge interest in development and comes from exactly that in his last position as Development Director for Former World Pro Tour Team Israel Premier Tech, a team that is home to many top contenders, including Michael Woods and Hugo Houle of Canada.

Fraser is himself a former professional road racing cyclist. A three-time Olympian and five-time Commonwealth Games participant, as a sprint specialist, he has over 200 career wins including becoming the 2004 Canadian national road race champion.

Gillian and Gord will be working together to ensure the riders have the belief system and strategies they need to convey their talent through this tactically driven sport. TaG's talented group of riders are young, focused, and they have great camaraderie. With our management dream team, they will have so much winning experience to guide them.

Through the past three years, TaG has navigated through the Pandemic by initially keeping the team racing with a complete European focus. As racing opened up we moved back to a combination [Europe/North America] calendar. The team is still taking advantage of the opportunities for the team to race at a high level in Europe for almost three months of the calendar.

North American racing comes back to a full schedule this year. The team will compete in all the major UCI and competitive calendar events, as well as a great complement of European stage and one day races. The objective has been to build the competence level and provide access to racing opportunities that will help the athletes to progress to the highest levels.

TaG has accrued 20 National Titles in Junior through U23 in the past 10 years as a team. One of our alumni, Maggie Coles-Lyster is now a triple National Champion. From management, our former director, Nigel Ellsay, is now a Director of Cycling Canada Road Development.

Now our addition to the formula is to continue to build the guidance team, and increase the professional direction.

Our long term goals include hopes for the youngest riders to represent the Canadian Team at the first Cycling World Championships being held on Canadian soil in 23 years, in Montreal 2026.

Returning riders on the Men's team are Thomas Schellenberg (BC), Axel Froner (ONT) Nathan Pruner (BC), Braden Kersey (BC), and Reid Kinniburgh (AB). They are joined by our new squad coming right out of Junior racing - Junior National Crit Champion Fergus English from Saskatchewan, Manu Moore (BC), and Marc Sato (BC).

The Women's team is in a reset and development year, and welcomes triathlete Sidney Clement (BC), and MTB racer Elle MacPhee (BC) to join returning riders Larissa Black (BC) and Maja Wooley (BC).

TaG Cycling Inc. is a Cycling Coaching company founded by Olympians Lesley Tomlinson, Gina Grain and Chrissy deVall (formerly Redden). TaG coaches all levels of cyclists to achieve their best and get lifetime fulfillment from the sport.

A huge thanks to our supporters who continue to make this possible.

Courtesy TaG