June 20, 2018 (Saguenay, QC) – The 2018 Global Relay Canadian Road Championships p/b Quebecor for Para, Junior, Under-23 and Elite riders will begin on Thursday in the beautiful Saguenay region of Quebec. Athletes have traveled from all over Canada and around the world to compete in the Time Trial, Road Race and Criterium events for the maple jersey awarded to the winners in each category.

First up will be the Individual Time Trial, with riders racing against the clock on a rolling course north of Chicoutimi, over distances ranging from 11.02 kilometres to 37.2 kilometres.

Among the riders to watch will be Para world champion Shelley Gautier (women’s T1), three-time Elite women’s Team Time Trial world champion Karol-Ann Canuel and Svein Tuft in the Elite men; Tuft is going for a remarkable 11th national title in his final year of racing before retiring from professional competition.

On Friday, the Para and Junior men and women will compete in their Road Race events, taking place on a 15-kilometre circuit in and around the town of La Baie, completing between two and eight laps, depending on category.

Saturday, will see the Under-23 and Elite categories for women and men compete in their Road Races, with the women completing eight laps (120.8 kilometres) and the men 12 laps (181.2 kilometres).  The women’s field contains tremendous depth, with professional riders entered including Leah Kirchmann (Team Sunweb), Karol-Ann Canuel (Boels Dolman), Kirsti Lay (Rally Cycling), Sara Bergen (Rally Cycling), Alison Jackson (Tibco-SVB) and Annie Foreman-Mackey (The Cyclery). A new champion will be crowned as Allison Beveridge (Rally Cycling), the defending champ, is unfortunately recovering from a broken arm and will not be on the start line.

The men’s race should be a battle between the two North American-based professional teams – Silber Pro Cycling and Rally Cycling – however, European-based professionals Antoine Duchesne (Groupama-FDJ) and Svein Tuft (Michelton Scott) could definitely be a factor along with recent Tour de Beauce winner James Piccoli (Elevate-KHS) and KOM winner Benjamin Perry (Israel Cycling Academy). Former road national road champ, Guillaume Boivin (Israel Cycling Academy), is also a non-starter due to an injured knee from an unfortunate accident with an automobile.

The Championships conclude on Sunday with the Criterium Challenge, a fast-paced spectator favourite, taking place on a 1.6 kilometre circuit through the streets of Chicoutimi. Junior and Elite (including Under-23) women and men will race for between 30 and 60 minutes, with the finish usually coming down to a high speed mass sprint for the line.

ITT START LIST here.

2018 Road Nationals Race Schedule

Thursday, June 21 – Individual Time Trial
Location: 305 Levesque Road

8am – Para T1-2 MW, H1-2 M, H1-5 W, H3-5 M, C1-3 M, C1-5 W
9:05am – Junior W
10:15am – Para C4-5 M, B MW
11:20am – Junior M
12:30pm – Para & Junior Podium Presentations
12:55pm – Elite W
2:15pm – Elite M
5:10pm – Elite Podium Presentations

Friday, June 22 – Road Race
Location: 1831 6th Ave, La Baie, QC

8am – Para C1-3 W, C4-5 W, C1-3 M, C4-5 M, H1-5 W, H1-2 M, H3-5 M, T1-2 MW, B W, B M
10:45am – Junior W
13:30pm – Junior M
Podium presentations will take place 15 minutes after the finish of each race.

Saturday, June 23 – Road Race
Location: 1831 6th Ave, La Baie, QC

8:30am – Elite W
12:15pm – Elite M
12:30pm – Elite Women’s Podium Presentations
5:15pm – Elite Men’s Podium Presentations

Sunday, June 24, 2018 – Criterium
Location: 251 Bossé Street, Chicoutimi, QC

9:15am – Junior W
10:15am – Junior M
11:15am – Junior Podium Presentations
11:30am – Elite W
1pm – Elite M
2:45pm – Elite Podium Presentations