Ottawa, ON (Oct. 28, 2024) – Canadian cycling athletes were in action on Oct. 26, 2024 both at the Canadian BMX Freestyle Championships in Bromont, QC, and in Abu Dhabi, UAE for the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships.
Canadian BMX Freestyle Championships
The new acrobatic zone at the Centre National de Cyclisme de Bromont was the setting for the crowning of two new BMX freestyle winners.
Alexandra Laforest and Maxime Chalifour, who frequently train in Bromont, were on a mission to win this year’s honours. They lived up to expectations, both getting the highest score in their respective categories.
“I’ve only been doing BMX freestyle for a year,” commented Laforest. “My boyfriend, Maxime (Chalifour), gave me his old bike. I’m a former rugby and soccer player, so I was looking for a new sport with adrenaline. I put a lot of effort into this year to be able to get the title of Canadian champion, and then it paid off because we won it!”
“We train here regularly,” added Chalifour. “It’s barely been a year since the center opened, and I made it my mission to win this year. Last year, at Joyride150 in Ontario, I finished second, and I really wanted to take first place this time. It feels good, with all the family and friends here, it’s great.”
On the men’s side, Mike Varga and Olympian Jeffrey Whaley took silver and bronze respectively, while Sarah Dinel and Marie-Soleil St-Laurent finished second and third on the women’s podium.
UCI Cycling Esports World Championships
Two Canadian athletes, Thomas Thrall and Tiffany Penner, were geared up for the final round of the UCI Esports World Championships, after months of planning and several qualifying rounds. As one of the 20 finalists in their categories, Thrall and Penner finished 12th and 17th respectively.
In the men’s category, Germany’s Jason Osborne took top honours, while Belgium’s Lionel Vujasin and Finland’s Kasper Borremans finished second and third respectively. New Zealand’s Kat McCarthy took the women’s world title, ahead of Brazil’s Gabriela Guerra and Switzerland’s Kathrin Fuhren, who took silver and bronze respectively.
The complete list of results from the Canadian BMX Freestyle Championships is available here, and the list of results from the UCI Esports World Championships is available here.
The next national championships on the calendar are the Canadian Cyclo-cross Championships on Nov. 16 and 17 in Lévis, QC. The complete calendar of national events can be consulted on the Cycling Canada website.
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