January 21/02 5:47 am - Road Nationals, Bessette Loses Appeal, New Canada Cup Series

Posted by Editor on 01/21/02
 

Road Nationals Update

We have a reliable rumour that the Road Nationals are likely to be in the East (Ontario/Quebec) in early August (after Commonwealth Games). There is a tentative location, but details are being worked out and nothing is confirmed.


Bessette Loses Worlds Appeal

Lyne Bessette has had her request to represent Canada at the Cyclo-cross World Championships next month denied by the High Performance Committee (HPC) of the CCA. Bessette appealed to the HPC to be allowed to represent Canada, even though she did not attend the national championships in Edmonton last November.

According to CCA spokesperson Sean O'Donnell, the HPC had a conference call last Friday to discuss the situation, and "remained firm in their decision not to approve the request."

"The rules are clear for Worlds selection - all athletes know that attending the nationals is mandatory. The HPC looked at earlier, similar requests, and said that since they had been turned down, it wouldn't be fair (to grant Bessette's request). It also would set a bad precedent for other areas of the sport, like track, road and mountain bike."

O'Donnell said that the HPC recognized that some would argue that Bessette represented Canada's strongest chance to win a medal, however, they felt that it was more important to be fair and impartial to all athletes.

Bessette has been informed of the decision by the CCA, and has not responded to our inquiries at this time.


New Canada Cup Road Series

It looks like there is going to be a Canada Cup road series starting up in 2002. All the details haven't been worked out, but this is what we know so far:

The first year will see 3 events. The likely locations are Alberta in late June, Ontario in late July and Quebec in late August. All three will be new events.

The concept is different from the old Canadian tire series, which was designed to attract top teams from across North America. This series is intended for developing riders and will have restrictions:

- Men age restriction 18-22, although promising 17 year old Juniors will be able to get in with provincial permission.

- Women age restriction 18-29 (similar option for 17 year olds).

- No UCI registered teams allowed.

- No gear restrictions.

Each event will consist of a single road circuit race on a challenging course of 10-20 kilometres. There will be funding available from the CCA to help organizers put on their events, and any profits generated by events are expected to go back into regional development programs.