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TEAM CANADA HEADS TO BRAZIL FOR THE 2024 PARA TRACK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ottawa, ON (March 15, 2024) – Cycling Canada is sending a team of six athletes to compete at the 2024 UCI Para-Track World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, BRA, on March 20-24 with sights set on the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

All glorious at the Parapan American Games in Santiago, CHE, in Nov. 2023, medallists Alexandre Hayward, Mel Pemble and Keely Shaw will be on hand, hoping to impress the crowds once again.

Two-time world champion in the C3 women’s omnium, Pemble will have big ambitions, looking to collect another rainbow jersey to add to her collection.

“Coming into my third World Championships, I feel like I’m in a better headspace than I was before heading into the 2023 Worlds, because I’ve had that experience of coming in with medals under my belt,” said Pemble. “There’s also the fact that it’s a Games year and there’s added pressure to keep up those performances in the Paralympic events to secure that spot for Paris, but I’d also like to push to keep my Omnium crown. It’s going to be a different approach going in with an even bigger race on the horizon.”

Compatriots and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic medallists Kate O’Brien and Shaw will build on the momentum of silver medals won at the World Championships in Glasgow in Aug. 2023, in the time trial and individual pursuit respectively, both in the women’s C4 category. After months of intensive training, the duo of Lowell Taylor and Ed Veal will also be ready to compete in the men’s B category.

Racing starts on March 20 and continues over the weekend. All information, including start lists and live timing, is available here.

Team Canada
Alexandre Hayward (MC3)
Kate O’Brien (WC4)
Mel Pemble (WC3)
Keely Shaw (WC4)
Lowell Taylor / Ed Veal (MB)

TEAM CANADA WRAPS UP SANTIAGO 2023 PARAPAN AMERICAN GAMES WITH 12 PARA-CYCLING MEDALS

Santiago, CHE (Nov. 28, 2023) – Team Canada’s para-cyclists made a strong impression at the biggest multi-sport event ever held in Chile, with a team of seven athletes racking up 12 medals in addition to setting new records and personal bests at the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games, held from Nov. 17-26. 

“We could not have asked for a better performance from our team at the Parapan American Games,” said National Team Coach Phil Abbot. “We are looking forward to seeing what 2024 holds for this talented group.” 

On Nov. 19, road athletes won the first four medals for para-cycling. Alex Hayward, 26, of Quispamsis, NB, was the first to claim gold with victory in the men’s C1-5 category. He was joined on the podium by teammate Mike Sametz, 27, of Calgary, AB, who took bronze. Later that day, Nathan Clement, 29, of West Vancouver, BC, also touched victory in the T1-2 mixed category, while Charles Moreau, 41, of Victoriaville, QC, was able to take home bronze in the H1-5 men’s category.  

Switching gears, four athletes took to the track on Nov. 23 and 24. Mel Pemble, 23, of Victoria, BC, (women’s C1-5) and Hayward (men’s C1-5) began their track journey with silver and bronze in the individual time trial. Sametz and Keely Shaw, 29, of Midale, SK, finished fifth and seventh, respectively, setting personal bests. The following day, all four athletes were on a mission, as Pemble (women’s C1-3), Hayward (men’s C1-3) and Shaw (women’s C4-5) set new Parapan American records in the individual pursuit, securing victory for Pemble and Hayward, silver for Shaw and bronze for Sametz (men’s C1-3). 

On Nov. 26, para-cyclists wrapped up the Parapan American Games by adding two medals to the Canadian team medal count thanks to the efforts of Nathan Clement (T1-2 – ) and Alex Hayward (C1-3) in the road race. 

After representing Canada as flag bearer at the opening ceremony, Shelley Gautier, 55, of Niagara Falls, ON, successfully completed her two road events in the T1-2 mixed category, finishing fifth in the road race and seventh in the time trial.  

Of the 140 athletes present at Santiago 2023, Hayward was the most decorated with a total of four medals to his credit. The para-cycling team’s total of 12 medals was tied with the para-athletics team for the largest number by sport within the Canadian team.  

More information, including results and the full schedule of events, can be found at www.santiago2023.org. 

CANADIAN PARACYCLISTS WIN TWO MORE MEDALS ON THE LAST DAY OF THE SANTIAGO 2023 PARAPAN AM GAMES

Santiago, CHE (Nov. 26, 2023) – Para-cycling at the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile concluded with seven Canadians taking on the road race on Nov. 26, adding a bronze and a silver medal to their haul.   

On courses ranging from 32.4 to 64 km, athletes in the H1-3, T1-2 and C1-5 categories battled it out on a course bordered by mountains and a cheering Chilean crowd.  

After winning gold twice and a bronze medal, 26-year-old Alex Hayward (C1-3) from Quispamsis, NB, rounded off his collection with a silver medal, completing his five laps with a time of 1:18:03h after a close battle with Colombians Alejandro Perea (1:18:01hr) and Esneider Muñoz Marin (1:19:10hr). Santiago 2023 bronze medallist in the road time trial and individual pursuit, Paralympic medallist Mike Sametz, 27, of Calgary, AB, finished sixth. 

“I think being so new to cycling, the road aspect of it is the biggest learning curve,” said Hayward. “Given the situation and how it played out I’m pretty happy with how finished. Mike and I had a plan to push the pace at the start, we threw a few attacks and eventually, one of mine stuck. Then it was one and one, and I didn’t have a lot of matches left and Alejandro’s been doing this for a long time, so he sprinted me at the end.” 

In the T1-2 men’s and women’s mixed start, former Paralympic swimmer Nathan Clement, 29, of West Vancouver, BC, captured his second medal of the Games by winning bronze, with a time of 58:02m in three laps, 1:07m behind Dennis Dale Connors of the USA and 24 seconds behind Juan Jose Betancourt of Colombia. 

“It was a great measuring stick to see where I was at as a rider and as a cyclist,” said Clement. “There’s still so much room I need to grow and expand, but overall, seeing my power and feeling throughout the race and from the start of my cycling to where I am now, this was my strongest performance.” 

Also taking part in the mixed start, Shelley Gautier, 55, of Niagara Falls, ON, holder of several World Road Championship titles, finished sixth, 22:03m behind first place. 

“I was time trialing by myself in the road race,” laughed Gautier. “But I was able to stick to a constant pedal stroke and I was able to get out there and have fun and I was the second lady and I was catching her, so I did very well.” 

Despite a blistering start and a solid battle against the Americans, Paralympian Charles Moreau, 41, from Victoriaville, QC, was the victim of a small collision, costing him precious minutes, good for fourth place with a time of 1:43:56hr just over a minute from the podium, occupied by three runners from the USA, Alfredo De Los Santos (1:42:53hr), Eric Ryan Pinney (1:42:03hr) and Brandon Lyons (1:42:54hr). 

Using their strength in their respective categories, former Paralympic skier Mel Pemble, 23, of Victoria, BC, and Paralympic medalist Keely Shaw, 29, of Midale, SK, finished with times of 1:17:08h and 1:47:18hr respectively, to finish fourth and fifth in the women’s C1-3 and C4-5 categories. The C1-3 women’s podium was occupied by Colombian Daniela Munevar, American Jamie Renee Whitmore and Colombian Paula Daniela Caballero, who all finished with a time of 1:11:37hr, while victory went to Colombian Paula Ossa Veloza (1:35:39hr) in the C4-5 women’s race. Mariela Delgado of Argentina and Samathan Bosco of the USA completed the podium, both with a time of 1:47:16hr. 

The road race concluded Team Canada’s cycling competition at the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games. More information, including results and the full schedule of events, can be found at www.santiago2023.org. 

PARAPANAMERICAN RECORDS FOR TEAM CANADA’S TRACK CYCLISTS AT SANTIAGO 2023

Santiago, CHE (Nov. 24, 2023) – Canada’s para-cyclists rose to the challenge on the second day of competition at the Velódromo Parque Peñalolén for the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile on November 24, with all four starters winning medals.

After winning silver in the women’s C1-5 individual time trial on November 23, Paralympian para-alpine skier Mel Pemble, 23, of Victoria, BC, finished second in the women’s C1-3 individual pursuit qualifying behind American Jamie Renee Whitmore, whom she faced in the gold medal final. After a tight battle, Pemble (4:10.103m) edged out her rival by just 0.109 seconds. Paula Perez Caballero (4:14.851m) took bronze.

“I feel really surprised,” said Pemble. “The Individual Pursuit is not my best event, to be honest so qualifying second was a bit of a surprise and I wasn’t super happy with my performance with the time that I got, I knew I had more in me. It made the battle even sweeter in the final, in terms of having nothing to lose, and I went out with a really good plan and everything that could have happened, happened. I had to kick it off a notch in the last kilometre and it paid off.”

Silver medallist at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games in the same discipline, Keely Shaw, 29, of Saskatoon, SK, was ready to give it her all in the women’s C4-5 after coming within 0.65s of the podium in the road time trial on November 19. Motivated by her performances of the week, Shaw set a new Parapan American Games qualifying record in the C4 women’s event with her time of 3:46.93 to advance to the gold medal final. In the end, she lost out to American Samatha Bosco (3:45.752), who beat her to the gold medal. Paula Ossa Veloza, of Colombia, took the bronze.

“Silver can be a hard pill to swallow with gold on the table,” said Shaw. “At the end of the day, our process was exactly what it needed to be. We came here knowing it was going to be a rehearsal for the upcoming World Championships and then later on the Paralympic Games, so I think we learned a lot about what we needed to do.”


Keely Shaw, Mel Pemble, Alex Hayward and Mike Sametz
Photo Credit: Claudio Santana/Getty Images
On a mission for his third medal in three races, track rookie Alex Hayward, 26, of Quispamsis, NB, who had won gold in the men’s C1-5 road time trial and bronze in the men’s C1-5 track time trial, was aiming to complete his medal collection in the men’s C1-3 individual pursuit, shattering the Parapan American Games men’s C3 record, with his qualifying time of 3:27.869m, propelling him automatically into the gold-medal final against Colombia’s Alejandro Perera Arango (3:32.491m), where he beat his own record to take gold.

“This is the first time I’m doing two pursuits back-to-back,” said Hayward. “Having had a bit of a rough season, to prove to myself that I can do two pursuits back-to-back and put down my two best times ever felt amazing.”

Satisfied with his performance after several years off the bike due to injury, Rio 2016 Paralympian Mike Sametz, 27, of Calgary, AB, who won bronze in the C1-5 Individual Time Trial on November 19 qualified third in the Men’s C1-3 Individual Pursuit, good for bronze medal final that he won by catching Colombia’s Esneider Muñoz.

“This is my first pursuit since the Rio Paralympic Games, so it’s nice to see where I’m at,” added Sametz, who is hoping to share the podium with Hayward once again on Sunday’s road race.

More information, including results and the full schedule of events, can be found at www.santiago2023.org. Competition for Team Canada’s paracyclists conclude on Nov. 26 with the road race.

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PERSONAL BESTS FOR PARA-TRACK CYCLISTS AT SANTIAGO 2023 PARAPAN AMERICAN GAMES

Santiago, CHE (Nov. 23, 2023) – Four para-cyclists switched gears on Nov. 23 at the Velódromo Parque Peñalolén for the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile adding two medals to their haul.

Athletes in the C1-5 categories took on the 500m-Kilometre Time Trial in a scorching hot velodrome, where PyeongChang 2018 Paralympian Mel Pemble and Santiago 2023 Time Trial Gold Medallist Alexandre Hayward respectively won silver and bronze.

On a mission, Mel Pemble, of Victoria, BC, stopped the clock with a time of 37.565s, just 0.701s short of victory, ultimately won by Sabrina Da Silva Custodia of Brazil, while Paula Ossa Veloza of Colombia completed the podium with bronze.

“I’m feeling amazing, mainly for the personal best and, of course, the medal is a bonus,” said Pemble. “I knew my times and how it reflected on the competitors here, but anything can happen on race day.”

Taking advantage of his victory in the C1-5 men’s individual road time trial on Nov. 19, Alex Hayward, of Quispamsis, NB, a former wheelchair basketball player and recent convert to track cycling, was able to climb onto the third step of the podium thanks to his time of 1:06.566m, behind Colombians Fabián Edwin Matiz Ruiz (1:04.388m) with gold and Carlos Vargas Villanueva (1:06.538m) with silver.

“I came here with no expectations,” said Hayward. “This is far from my event. I think I’ve only done one other kilo in my life earlier this year and it was five seconds slower. I came here looking for a personal best, and I achieved that, and it just happened to be enough for a podium. Tomorrow’s Individual Pursuit is probably the event that I’ve been looking forward to the most, I’ve had a bit of a bad run at that at Worlds and I would like to redeem myself.”

Although they didn’t make the podium, Paralympic medallists Mike Sametz, of Calgary, AB, and Keely Shaw, of Saskatoon, SK, were pleased with their performances, with their respective times of 1:08.707m and 40.179s, good for fifth and seventh place.

“It was a super fun day out there,” added Shaw, “The track was running fast. Personally, I got over a two second personal best, so while I wasn’t on the podium, I think there’s a lot to take away from today, it’s a really good place to be and a really good mile marker before we go to Brazil in March for World Championships.”

More information, including results and the full schedule of events, can be found at www.santiago2023.org. Competition for Team Canada’s track para-cyclists continues Nov. 24 with the Individual Pursuit.

TEAM CANADA CLINCHES FOUR PARA-CYCLING MEDALS ON DAY 1 OF THE SANTIAGO 2023 PARAPAN AMERICAN GAMES

Santiago, CHE (Nov. 19, 2023) – Team Canada’s road para-cyclists set the bar high on the first day of racing at Calles de Isla de Maipo, CHE, at the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games on Nov. 19, winning two gold medals and two bronze medals.

Alexandre Hayward, 26, of Quispamsis, NB, and Mike Sametz, 27, of Calgary, AB, won gold and bronze in the men’s C1-5 category under a blazing sun and motivated by a passionate Chilean crowd. Completing two laps of the 10km course, the maple leaf representatives clocked 26:21.14m and 27:25.14m, respectively. Brazil’s Lauro Cesar Moro completed the podium, finishing 44:92s behind Hayward.

“Mikey and I spent a week together in Bromont leading up to this,” said Hayward. “We’ve kind of been joking around that it would be nice to stand on the podium together and I think to do it on the first day is pretty special. This was a unique time trial. Usually when you leave the start-finish area the fans sort of die off a bit but they were all over the course, which made it a lot of fun.”


Alexandre Hayward
Photo Credit: Oscar Muñoz Badilla/Getty Images

In a mixed start that combined men and women in the T1-T2 categories, reigning World Champion Nathan Clement, 29, of West Vancouver, BC, and Paralympian Shelley Gautier, 55, of Niagara Falls, ON, left it all on the course. With a time of 15:44.73m, Clement came out on top, finishing 1:29m ahead of Dale Connors of the United States of America. Colombia’s Juan Betancourt took third place with a time of 17:46.71m while Gautier finished fifth with a time of 18:42.12m.“Being here, hearing the crowd of everyone here has been absolutely amazing,” said Clement. “The loud noise all throughout the course, even riding the course yesterday and seeing the mountains in the distance was absolutely breathtaking.”

National Team Coach Phil Abbott added, “We came here to test out a couple of things and see what Nathan could do, I think today’s been really exciting and there’s hopefully a bright future for the rest of the season as we lead into Paris and get prepared for that.”

Rio 2016 Paralympic medallist Charles Moreau, 41, of Victoriaville, QC, went on to claim bronze in the men’s H1-H5 category with his time of 31:46.65m, 27.60s behind winner Eric Ryan Pinney of the USA. They were joined on the podium by Brandon Lyons (+19.28s), also from the USA, with silver.

“Most of the time, I visualize race situations and I visualize the stronger runners I have ahead of me that I need to catch,” commented Moreau. “When it’s harder, I tend to think about the people at home. We spend a lot of time away from home, away from family, so often it’s an extra source of motivation, to tell yourself that you’re making sacrifices for them and it’s affecting them too, so you push even harder.”


Nathan Clement and Charles Moreau with their medals.
Photo Credit: Oscar Muñoz Badilla/Getty Images

In a strong ride, 29-year-old Paralympian Keely Shaw from Saskatoon, SK, finished in fourth place with a time of 15:34.08, just 0.6s behind the bronze medal won by Daniela Carolia Munevar, of Colombia. Gold and silver medals went to Samanta Bosco (15:08.01m) and Jamie Whitmore (15:29.13m), both from the USA. Mel Pemble, 23, from Victoria, BC, also took part in the event. She finished in seventh place, with a time of 16:55.52m.More information, including results and the full schedule of events, can be found at www.santiago2023.org. Competition for Team Canada’s para-cyclists continues Nov. 23 with track competition.

Note: Tarek Dahab (MC2), of Beloeil, QC, will no longer be competing at the Games due to health reasons.

NATHAN CLEMENT BECOMES WORLD CHAMPION AT 2023 UCI CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ottawa, ON (Aug. 9, 2023) – Paralympian Nathan Clement of West Vancouver, BC, nabbed his first-ever World Champion title in the Men T1 Individual Time Trial on Aug. 9 at the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, GBR.

“This time trial was though,” said Clement, who finished second in both the time trial and road race in 2022. “It took some time to get going at the start of the race, but as it progressed, I was able to dial in and focus on the training I’ve worked on with my coach Phil Abbott. The win is still sinking in and the emotions haven’t caught yet. Getting to this World Championships was a journey. I am very thankful and appreciative of the incredible team of coaches and the support staff behind me.”

Clement rode at a speed of over 30km/hr to complete the 10.8km course in 18:50.35m. He was joined on the podium by Jianxin Chen (CHN) in the silver medal position and Rongfei Lu (CHN) in bronze.

Full results from the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships can be found here and daily highlights from the Canadian National Cycling Team can be found at https://cyclingcanada.ca/news.

Photo Credit: Richard Blaxall/SWpix.com 

MEL PEMBLE HOLDS ON TO OMNIUM CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE AT 2023 UCI CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ottawa, ON (Aug. 8, 2023) – 2022 World Champion Mel Pemble successfully secured the rainbow jersey for another year in the Women C3 Omnium on Aug. 8 at the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, GBR.

“I knew it was going to be a fight for this omnium and had to play my cards right,” said the Victoria, BC, native. “I had the omnium in the back of my mind with every decision I made in the scratch. Of course, I was still trying to defend the scratch title but it’s such a fun and unpredictable event that I’m still over the moon with the silver. I crossed the line and in that moment I was just so unbelievably happy to get that omnium title for another year.”

Pemble secured the championship after completing four events for a total of 154 points. She kicked off the multi-day competition with seventh in the Individual Pursuit on Aug. 3 before nabbing a first-place finish in the 200m Sprint on Aug. 4, followed by a bronze medal finish in the Time Trial on Aug. 7. On Aug. 8, Pemble brought home the silver medal in the Women C3 Scratch Race to ultimately clinch omnium gold.

Full results from the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships can be found here and daily highlights from the Canadian National Cycling Team can be found at https://cyclingcanada.ca/news.

Aniek van den Aarssen (NED), Mel Pemble (CAN), Richael Timothy (IRE)
Photo Credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com

TWO WORLD TITLES & ONE SILVER MEDAL FOR CANADA AT PARA CYCLING TRACK WORLDS

Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France (October 24, 2022) – Team Canada concluded the 2022 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines in France, with a total of two world titles, one silver medal and plenty of personal bests. Over the four days of competitions, newcomer to the national team, Mel Pemble made her name known after winning both rainbow jerseys at her first World Championships of her young career in both the Scratch Race and the Omnium in the women’s C3 category. Veteran and Paralympic and World Championships medallist added another medal to her impressive resume after taking the silver in the women’s C4 500-metre Time Trial.

“It’s an incredible performance for sure, I knew she [Pemble] had it in her,” commented Sébastien Travers, National Team Coach. “She’s got some experience on the track and we just tried to rehearse what she normally does at home and to execute the races – at our best capacities. She was at the right place at the right time and then just did a master effort at the end, which paid off.”

On the first day of competition, Pemble beat the world record in the 200-metre Sprint, taking the win in the first event of the Omnium competition. Her win in the Scratch Race, which also counted towards the overall in the Omnium allowed her to cumulate enough points to stand at the top of the standings. She ended the four events with a total of 150 points, just 2 points in front of Aniek Van den Aarsen from the Netherlands, ultimately winning the world title.

On the final day of racing, Pemble, O’Brien and Alexandre Hayward all capped off their racing schedules to take part in the Mixed Team Sprint event, where they raced their way to an 11th spot with a time of 57.311.

All results can be found here.

 PEMBLE WINS RAINBOW JERSEY AT PARA CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France (October 21, 2022) – Mel Pemble is turning heads on day two of the 2022 Para Cycling Track World Championships claiming the rainbow jersey and Canada’s first gold medal of the week. Using the momentum of her World Record from day one in the 200-metre Sprint, she would ride to the top of the podium at her first World Championships of her career.

“This is so surreal,” commented Pemble after received her rainbow jersey. “This is a goal I had maybe in two years time, maybe next year. For it to happen at my first World Championships, made it quite the day. I was really nervous today, so I’m glad it paid off.”

With one lap to go, Pemble was standing in third place before she attacked to position herself at the front of the race, ultimately crossing the finish line in first place in front of Aniek Van den Aarssen from the Netherlands and Clara Brown from the United States.

Alexandre Hayward from Quispamsis, New Brunswick was also in action today at his first World Championships, where he raced a personal best in the Men’s C3 Individual Pursuit with a time of 1:14.908. He did not advance to next round but finished with a 5th position.

With only two days of racing, Canadian athletes are getting ready for the next races, with Pemble hoping to grab more points in the Omnium, where she currently stands in first position. All results can be found here and a livestream is available here.