Canadians crush the Pan Am continental championships in Costa Rica
A gold rush for Team Canada across XCC, XCO and Team Relay events
Photo by:
Marco Sánchez
It’s been a massive showing for Team Canada at the 2025 Pan American Continental Championships in Costa Rica, with Canadian riders stacking gold medals and podiums across every race so far.
Jenn Jackson kept her momentum rolling after her XCC win, grabbing another gold in the elite women’s XCO race. Jackson won with a time of 1:27:45, ahead of American Kate Courtney. Emilly Johnston joined her on the podium in third, with Sandra Walter and Juliette Tétreault also finishing inside the top 10.
In the Elite Men’s XCO, Mexico’s Jose Gerardo Ulloa Arevalo took the win, but Logan Sadesky led the Canadian charge with a strong 13th place, and Dylan Kerr rolled into 17th.
Team Canada takes relay gold
Before the individual races even started, Team Canada already made a statement, grabbing the Team Relay gold in convincing fashion. Rafaelle Carrier, Maxime St-Onge, Nicolas Gauthier, Jenn Jackson, Owen Clark and Ella MacPhee put together six flawless laps, edging out the USA by nearly 40 seconds.
“I’ve been a part of national team relays before but never even been on the podium, so it’s pretty sweet,” said Owen Clark. “Championship jerseys are epic.”
Ella MacPhee summed it up perfectly: “We race in a primarily individual sport, so getting to work as a team for the victory is super good. We had a strategic order to avoid traffic, and we all gave our best to grow the lead until the finish.”
U23 and Junior riders deliver
Canada’s next generation showed up in a big way in the XCO races.
Owen Clark crushed the U23 men’s race, taking the win with a time of 1:19:47. Teammate Ian Ackert followed him onto the podium with a silver medal, while Maxime St-Onge (8th) and Alexander Woodford (9th) kept Canada’s presence strong in the top 10.
In the junior men’s race, Tristan Taillefer and Nicolas Gauthier went 2-3 behind American Benjamin Bravman, with Kelan Wells rounding out the Canadian top results in 12th.
On the women’s side, Rafaelle Carrier dominated the junior women’s race, taking gold with Lily-Rose Marois adding a fourth-place finish. In the U23 women’s race, Ella MacPhee took top honours, with Marin Lowe right behind her for a Canadian 1-2 sweep.
Momentum heading into the world cup
With relay gold, short track titles and now multiple XCO gold medals, Canada is making it very clear they’re a team full of contenders. Next up? The Czech venue of Nové Město Na Moravě.