Cycling Canada – Cochabamba, Bolivia (September 6, 2019) – Team Canada had an exceptional start to the Pan American Track Championships in Cochabamba, Bolivia, with riders setting Canadian and Pan American records in four separate events. Kelsey Mitchell kicked off the second day of competition by setting a new World and Pan Am record in the 200m Sprint with a time of 10.154, and went on to win all of her heats to qualify for the semi-finals today.
“It felt pretty great to establish a new record,” said Mitchell. “The track is fast here and the air is thin, so I knew the record would be beaten but I didn’t know if I would be the one to do it. I’m pumped about my time but I’m focused on the next race and hoping to make it all the way to the final.”
On the endurance side, both women’s and men’s Team Pursuit squads set records, with the women setting a time of 4:13.488 and the men 3:49.974, which earned them both gold medals and automatic qualifications to the World Championships. In individual events, both Kinley Gibson and Aidan Caves won bronze in the Scratch Race on Wednesday.
In the women’s Team Sprint, Lauriane Genest and Kelsey Mitchell set a record time of 32.232 seconds, and went on to win the gold medal in the Final against Mexico. Defending Keirin champion Hugo Barrette made it to the semi-finals, but had an unfortunate crash during the race and will be unable to return to competition this week. Joel Archambault finished 4th in the event.
“It felt pretty great to establish a new record,” said Mitchell. “The track is fast here and the air is thin, so I knew the record would be beaten but I didn’t know if I would be the one to do it. I’m pumped about my time but I’m focused on the next race and hoping to make it all the way to the final.”
On the endurance side, both women’s and men’s Team Pursuit squads set records, with the women setting a time of 4:13.488 and the men 3:49.974, which earned them both gold medals and automatic qualifications to the World Championships. In individual events, both Kinley Gibson and Aidan Caves won bronze in the Scratch Race on Wednesday.
In the women’s Team Sprint, Lauriane Genest and Kelsey Mitchell set a record time of 32.232 seconds, and went on to win the gold medal in the Final against Mexico. Defending Keirin champion Hugo Barrette made it to the semi-finals, but had an unfortunate crash during the race and will be unable to return to competition this week. Joel Archambault finished 4th in the event.
About Cycling Canada
Cycling Canada is the governing body for competitive cycling in Canada. With the vision of becoming a leading competitive cycling nation, Cycling Canada manages the High Performance team, hosts national and international events and administers programs to promote and grow cycling across the country.
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Source: Cycling Canada
Information:
Karine Bedard l Cycling Canada l 438-884-8771 l karine.bedard@cyclingcanada.ca