Canadian cross country racers open season with speed on both sides of Atlantic
Massi Supercup and Tropical Mountain Bike Challenge deliver early HC racing
Photo by:
Michal Cerveny / UCI Mountain Bike World Series
Cross country season is well underway and, with the Paris Olympics looming on the horizon, Canada’s fastest are getting after it early. With most of Canada still covered in snow, or at least supposed to be, the Canucks are chasing UCI races abroad.
Two big HC (hors categorie) events on either ide of the Atlantic Ocean, in Spain and Puerto Rico, offered early opportunities to collect chunks of UCI points. The Canadians took full advantage, earning podiums  on this side of the ocean and getting footing in the elite field in Spain. Should be an exciting year!
Massi Supercup Banyoles
Carter Woods (Giant Factory Off-Road Team) and Gunnar Holmgren (KMC Ridley) earned top-15 finishes in the elite men’s race at Shimano Supercup Massi, a classic HC XCO in Banyoles, Spain. A French trio walked away with the podium, with Victor Koretzky (Specialized) leading BMC teammates Jordan Sarrou and Totouan Carod.
Woods was the first Canuck across the line in 11th. That’s one better than the Vancouver Island racer finished last week at the Internacionales Chelva Gsport Challenge, a HC event in Chevla, Spain and shows Woods is settling into his first year of elite racing nicely after a very strong U23 career. Holmgren finished a few spots back in 14th. It’s a strong sign he’s carried the momentum from his impressive 2023 season from Pivot Cycles-OTE to his new spot on KMC Ridley.
Emilly Johnston fourth in under-23 women’s race behind Germany’s Kira Bohm, Sara Cortinovis of Italy and the U.S.A.’s Sophia Waite. It’s a strong opener for the Comox Valley racer’s second season with Trek Future Racing.
In the elite women’s race, Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Ineos) added another win to her campaign towards Paris Olympics, finishing with over a minute advantage to Jolanda Neff (Trek Factory Racing) and the U.S.A.’s Savilia Blunk (Rockrider Ford)
Tropical Mountain Bike Challenge
Way over on the ohter side of the Atlantic, another group of Canadians had great success taking on a wildly muddy edition of the Tropical Mountain Bike Challenge, a HC-ranked UCI race in Salinas, Puerto Rico.
Ella McPhee flew to a podium in the elite women’s race, finishing behind U.S. XCO star and Snowshoe XCC World Cup winner Gwen Gibson in the XCO. That follows a third behind Gibson in the short track XC in Salinas. It’s a set of fantastic results for McPhee, who is still under-23 and recently joined Pivot Cycles-OTE’s impressive talent deveopment program.
After Raphael Auclair (Pivot Cycles-OTE) landed a fourth behind Christopher Blevins, another Snowshoe XCC World Cup winner (and world champion) in the XCC, it was Leandré Bouchard (Forresco Holdings ProCo RL Pro Team) leading the Canadian effort in the XCO. Bouchard finished seventh behind Chilean phenom Martin Vidaurre. Tyler Orschel placed one spot behind in eigths.
Cole Punchard (Pivot Cycles-OTE) added a podium in a very muddy under-23 XCO, finishing second. Rafaelle Carrier and Maude Ruelland put Pivot on the podium again in the junior women’s XCO with a second and third place finish behind Joy Harumi Mendez Garcia (Mexico).
Where are Canadians racing next?
With the season underway, there’s now a flurry of activity. The Maxxis Factory Racing team is over in Spain for the six-day AndalucÃa Bike Race. Re-united teammates Andrew L’Esperance and Sean Fincham will race the men’s event while Eva Poidevin is teaming up with guest rider Ruby West, who will try her hand at mountain bike racing after a career spend on velodrome boards and cyclocross mud.
There’s also more C1 cross country racing on this side of the Pacific at the Puerto Rico MTB Cup in Rincon.
