Numainville wins the 2013 national championship road race

Joëlle Numainville won the elite women’s national championship road race after a gravelly run-in to Saint-Georges, Que., Friday. She finished the 100-km course in a time of three hours, one minute, 23 seconds.

“Everybody was looking to us to chase back the breaks, so it was either let it go, or go after it,” said Numainville after the race. “I felt strong all race. I just jumped on her wheel and just be really focused on what I had to do.”

Numainville was followed across the line by her Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies teammate Leah Kirchmann in second and Lex Albrecht of Now and Novartis for MS in third place.

“I’m here alone, so I had to play the race out differently than I usually would. I just tried to be smart and save a lot of energy for the finish,” said Albrecht, whose cheering family offered a mental boost at the finish. “Coming into the finish it was pretty fast. Optum had a lead out there, and I just tried to do what I could to stay up at the front, and I was happy that the finish ended in an uphill.”

In the under-23 race, Elisabeth Albert won the title ahead of Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin (Equipe Quebec) and Maghalie Rochette.

A race of attrition

Numainville was highly combative all race, attacking frequently to test the rest of the peloton. Winds proved challenging on the circuit portion of the course, surrounding the village of Saint-Odilon. Crosswinds buffeted riders on the valley road, and they faced a headwind on the climb into the village. Sunny skies caused the temperature to climb over 30 degrees Celsius.

Following three laps of the circuit, riders raced the final 30 kms back to Saint-Georges, first heading up a massive climb. A few riders broke free of the peloton, but could not hold off the main group behind.

Jasmin Glaesser (Tibco-To The Top) was largely responsible for pulling in the break, riding at the front of the peloton for close to 10 kms with help. The young rider had struggled early in the race after the battery for her shifter system lost its charge, dropping her off the back.

In the final 10 kms, Numainville and Optum teammate Kirchmann attacked, with Karol-Ann Canuel (Equipe Quebec) following. Albrecht and Veronique Fortin also made the jump, and the five quickly built a lead over the peloton.

With six kilometres remaining, riders had to cross a short gravel stretch. Numainville crossed back onto the pavement with a flat tire, and quickly took a spare bike, but was stuck back with the peloton, the leaders riding with a 30-second advantage.

“I had to bridge to the leaders after the gravel,” said Numainville. “I think I closed the gap with 500 metres to go. I just tried to be focused and believe I could do this. It was one of those days where you just have to give everything. It was worth it to take the chance.”

Numainville attacked again, bridging the gap to the breakaway with less than a kilometre to go. Kirchmann provided the lead out, and the pair crossed the line in first and second.

“There was a moment of panic when she flatted in the gravel section. I offered her my wheel, but she said ‘no no, just go.,'” said Kirchmann. “I thought it was too close for her to actually make it back to the group. I thought I would be the one sprinting.

“It was kind of a miracle to look back and see an orange helmet bridging across. I saw her coming and said ‘ok, jump on my wheel’ and I took her around the last corner. It’s really exciting to go 1-2.”

Optum teammate and last year’s winner Denise Ramsden was happy to see the title go to a teammate. “The race was pretty dramatic in the last 20 kms,” said Ramsden. “Joelle and I were off in a group and then that came back. And then they got away and had the flat. It didn’t need to be me that kept the jersey as long as the team did. If anyone else attacked, [the peloton] would just let it go, but if we attacked, everyone was right on us.”

“It was a pretty exciting race. When you look at how Joelle rode the race, she was very relaxed and in control,” said Jacques Landry, High Performance Director for Cycling Canada Cyclisme. “She’s definitely gone up in a level and today, to be able to come back from a puncture in the gravel section, with ease, and get up to the front again. She was pretty much controlling the race the whole way.”

Under-23 race winner Elisabeth Albert surprised herself with the championship victory after just finishing a semester of school earlier this week. “I came Sunday to check the track,” she said. “I am at school for medicine, and I finished on Wednesday, so the challenge was to be there psychologically as well as physically. I took the race step-by-step, and the course was not as hard as I thought, and a good finish for me with the uphill.”

Glaesser finished fourth in the under-23 results after a frustrating race. The sole Tibco rider had overcome both the technical problem early in the race and the effort of leading the peloton to reel in the second last breakaway.

“I missed the break that I should have been on,” said Glaesser. “It was a really hard race after the shifting problems early on.”

The men’s race starts tomorrow at 12pm ET. The race will use the same course, but include eight laps of the Saint-Odilon circuit to achieve a total distance of 187 kms. Follow our live coverage here.

Also see the replay the action from our live coverage.