Canadian track cycling championships results from Day 2 at the Milton velodrome
On Sunday, the second day of competition of the Canadian track cycling championships at the Cisco Milton Pan Am/Parapan Am velodrome saw the country's top racers in individual and omnium competitions.
On Sunday, the second day of competition of the Canadian track cycling championships at the Cisco Milton Pan Am/Parapan Am velodrome saw the country’s top racers in individual and omnium competitions.
Jasmin Glasser (Cycling BC), who was part of the gold-medal winning team pursuit squad the previous night, won the individual team pursuit with a time of 3:38.378 and an average speed of 49.456 km/h. Anne Foreman-Mackey (The Cyclery-Opus) was second. Allison Beveridge rounded out the podium.
Remi Pelletier-Roy (Equipe de Quebec) won his third individual pursuit title. His time of 4:33.815 beat Ryan Roth’s (Sibler Pro Cycling) 4:35.658. Ed Veal of RealDeal/Gears presented by WASPcam, Pelletier-Roy’s teammate in the team pursuit, won the bronze with 4:37.449. The individual title is a sentimental favourite of Pelletier-Roy’s, but he values both team and individual competitions. “The national team pursuit is like a boy band: it’s really fun to be involved with. But, for sure, I like the individual events. I don’t think I’d appreciate them as much if I was just training by myself,” he said. He values the ability to help out younger members of the team. Pelletier-Roy also rides for team Garneau-Quebecor and is the 2014 national criterium champion. While he performs well on the road, it’s a tool for the track. He has his sights set on the next Olympics in Rio.
In the Masters B sprint, Chris Firek won the title. In the final race, he clocked a time of 12.006. Steve McKee picked up silver for his efforts. Steve Grundy won both races against Brent Atkins to clinch bronze.
The Masters C sprint field featured a few titans of the sport. Gord Singleton faced off against Gerard-Louis Robert. The two have competed against one another many times throughout the years. Singleton—who is also volunteering at the event and worked from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. during the first day of competition—knew after the first race, that he wouldn’t be getting the maple-leaf jersey. “The truth is tonight, I got no gas,” Singleton said. “I beat Robert in the first heat, and I knew my night was over. He is older than me and I commend him for being so fit at an old age. He’s remarkable. And I love the guy like a brother because I’ve known him for a long time. I love racing him. He’s a gentleman. But you get to our age and…there’s nobody home tonight.” Robert won the maple-leaf jersey, his 21st Canadian title. Richard Ugalde captured silver; Singleton, bronze.
The Masters A category had two competitors: Mark Palma and Craig Saari. Palma, of Team NCCH presented by DEC, won the title.
In the women’s sprint competition, Monique Sullivan won gold. Kate O’Brien got silver and Lizanne Wilmot, bronze. On the men’s side, the races between Hugo Barrette and Joseph Veloce were fierce. Barrette took the title; Veloce was runner-up. Victoria’s Evan Carey was on the third step of the podium.
While the individual pursuit races resulted in championships jerseys, they also played a role in the omnium standings, along with scratch and elimination races. The men also had a points race for qualification. Beveridge won the final omnium event of the day. After the race, she admitted that because she races with Glaesser on the national team, she had a strategy to use against her teammate. She out sprinted Glaesser in last lap of the elimination race. The win also put Beveridge in the lead of the multi-event competition with 114 points. Glaesser finished the day in second with 112 points. Jamie Gilgen was third with 108. Pelletier-Roy won the men’s elimination race, but was unable to unseat Veal from the lead of the omnium standings. Veal finished the day with 110 points; Pelletier-Roy, 104 and Jean Michel Lachance, 96.
