Gallery: Canadians challenge for the win in Sunday’s Silver Goose elite races
Rochette and van den Ham in tight races for the win as Pan-American championships conclude in Midland, Ont.
Silver Goose CX concluded on Sunday with two of the most dramatic and hard fought races of the whole weekend, as Canadians Michael van den Ham and Maghalie Rochette vied for the Pan-American cyclocross championship titles.
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Both Canadians were buoyed by a vocally supportive crowd, cheering for the home country riders to take wins at the first ever Pan-Am cyclocross event held in Canada. After putting in a huge effort to close a gap mid-race, van den Ham was less than a bike length from winning the elite men’s race.
In Sunday’s final race, Rochette came out on top of a race-long back-and-forth battle with American cyclocross star Ellen Noble to claim her first elite Pan-American cyclocross championship title.
American national champion Stephen Hyde keeps a close eye on Canadian national champion Michael van den Ham, while Curtis White sits on the front
Van den Ham took the initiative early on, trying to split up a group of seven elite men riding together at the front of the race
White opened a mid-race gap when Hyde crashed into the granite steps, holding up van den Ham
The Canadian closed to White, but the American had more left in the tank when it came to the final sprint
In the final race of the weekend, a sizeable and star-studded elite women's field took on the Silver Goose course
A leading trio quickly formed, with Ellen Noble, Maghalie Rochette and World Cup winner Kaitlin Keough distancing the field
Rochette keeping a close eye on Ellen Noble early in Sunday's championship race
Not far back, local Ontario mountain biker Jenn Jackson was holding strong in a chase group, trading leads with Squid Bikes Sam Runnels
Sandra Walter got off to a fast start, but Catharine Pendrel and Rebecca Fahringer caught her on the final laps
Up front, Rochette and Noble had distanced Keough, and were dueling for the win
Ellen Noble showing the effort of trying to close the late race gap and disappointment of coming so close to the win
Silver Goose Pan-American cyclocross championships elite men's podium: Michael van den Ham (2nd), Curtis White (1st), Kerry Werner (3rd)
Silver Goose Pan-American cyclocross championships elite women's podium: Ellen Noble (2nd), Maghalie Rochette (1st), Kaitlin Keough (3rd)
