Quebec Riders Finish 1-2 in Stage 4 of Tour de Beauce

Canadian riders - more specifically, Quebec riders - took six of the top ten spots in the time trial on the fourth stage of the Tour de Beauce on Saturday. Jacob Roy (Les Régis p.b. Groupe Automax) won the stage, nearly two seconds in front of Joel Plamondon (Equipe du Quebec). Marshall Erwood (Whoosh-NZ Cycling Project), winner of Stage 1, was third, less than half a second further in arrears. Andres Paredes (Medellin-EPM) had no problem holding on to the yellow jersey after finishing fifth, and actually increased his overall lead. The time trial was held along Champlain Boulevard in Quebec City, next to the St Lawrence Seaway. At only eight kilometres it was a short but technically difficult circuit. Heading west off the start ramp for 500 metres, the riders then had a very tight 180-degree turn to head on a longer leg east along the waterfront, before another 180 turn brought them back to start area, where they made a right onto Cote de Sillery for a final steep 600 metre climb to the finish line. Roy, attending his first Tour de Beauce, recorded a time of 10:04.830, 1.42 seconds ahead of Plamondon, with Erwood a further 0.460 seconds behind. Another Quebecer, Nicolas Gauthier (Les Rouleurs de Gatineau) was fourth, less than 0.15 seconds off the podium. Other Canadians in the top ten included Robin Plamondon (Velo Cartel/Siboire) in seventh, Laurent Gervais (Project Echelon) in ninth and Jerome Gauthier (Project Echelon) in tenth. Gauthier's result was enough to put him in the red jersey as Best Young Rider. In the overall standings, Paredes increased his lead over teammate Andres Pineda from 38 seconds to 47, while Tim McBirney (Project Echelon), the breakaway star of Stage 3 moves into third, at 55 seconds. Leo Roy (Entreposage Bluebird Quebec en velo) is the top Canadian on GC in fourth at at 1:05. Two other Canadians are in the top ten - Quentin Cowan (Entreposage Bluebird Quebec en velo) in eighth at 1:29, and Joel Plamondon in ninth at 1:37. In addition to the yellow jersey, Paredes continues to hold the white jersey for the Points competition. Samuel Couture (Cannondale Echelon p.b. 4iiii) remains the green jersey holder for the Climbers, while Jerome Gauthier holds a three second lead of former red jersey wearer Killian O'Brien (Team Skyline). The 2026 Tour de Beauce concludes on Sunday in St-Georges, with the traditional circuit race - 13 laps of a 10.2 kilometre circuit. This is often considered the most difficult stage of the tour, with a one kilometre climb each lap and many sharp corners. More than once, a leader has lost the title on this stage as his team tries to defend against constant attacks before finally cracking. As few as 30 riders complete the last stage. Tour de Beauce: Stage 4 results