Geneviève Jeanson and Lyne Bessette to team up for 2023 races
The two former pro cyclists made the surprise announcement
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Geneviève Jeanson/Facebook
For Geneviève Jeanson and Lyne Bessette, a lot has changed in 15 years. The two former pro cyclists enjoyed successful careers, and even rode on the national team together, but were never friends. Jeanson and Bessette sparred on and off the bike during their time in the sport, as was famously reported in the media.
Geneviève Jeanson and Lyne Bessette have ended their decades-long feud
Jeanson would quit the sport ignominiously in 2006, clouded in doping rumours. She would ultimately confess to using EPO and receive a two-year suspension. She returned to cycling in 2022, racing gravel with the Floyd’s of Leadville team. Along the way, she and Bessette began chatting and would ultimately meet at a race in Quebec. Since then, the two have become good friends.
Geneviève Jeanson: my EPO test was the best thing that ever happened to me
In 2023, however, they will also be teammates. Jeanson, 41, made the announcement on Facebook.
“I am extremely excited to announce that Lyne and I will be adventuring together for the 2023 season. We will participate in, among others, the Rasputitsa Dirt La Buckland sur gravelle, the GBC500 with Endurance Aventure as well as the ultra-endurance gravel race Badlands in Spain.”
In an interview with LaPresse, the two riders spoke of their plans. “We’ve always been on the national team together, but we’ve never raced as true teammates,” Bessette, 47 said. “We want to finally get to know each other. We’re still in shape. We want to take advantage of the chance we didn’t have when we raced.”
Jeanson is looking forward to spending time with Bessette. “Lyne, she’s a person I don’t know at all. I want to make up for lost time. The best way to discover her as a human being is by doing the sport we both love,” Jeanson said.
