December 06, 2017 (Milton, ON) – The final day of competition for the UCI TISSOT Track World Cup Round 3 saw Team Canada take home a fourth medal at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre Velodrome in Milton, as another exhilarating competition brought crowds to their feet. The final tally was a gold and three silver medals for the host team.

The Canadian Men’s Team Pursuit squad of Michael Foley, Derek Gee, Adam Jamieson and Jay Lamoureux wowed a capacity crowd as things got underway decisively defeating Team USA to earn a spot in the gold medal match against rivals New Zealand. The foursome posted a stunning time of 3:58 for the four-kilometer event – the fastest time of the competition and a new Canadian record for the young squad. This was only their second time under the four-minute barrier – the first was at sea level.

Milton’s Michael Foley was electric starting his first ever-senior competition in the start position and riding the full 4,000m distance (in team pursuit it is common for the starter to drop off at half distance). The stage was set for the Canadian men to match the women’s team pursuit gold achieved the night before as they opened the gold medal final with a torrid pace gaining a 1-second lead over the New Zealand by the halfway mark.

However disaster struck as Jamieson hit one of the foam blocks that line the apron of the track (to prevent racers riding under the official timing line) and swung up. Foley was just behind and his front wheel collided with Jamieson’s rear. The young rider crashed heavily, but the remaining Canucks were able to quickly regroup and despite the unfortunate circumstances they only conceded a half-second to New Zealand opponents and took home the silver.

“We had an unfortunate mishap,” explained Lamoureux. “Our second rider [Jamieson] clipped a bumper and it shot him up the track, and then the third rider [Foley] clipped his wheel, and took a spill. Somehow we managed to get it back together and come out with a 3:59. The energy here is absolutely electric, and it fuels the riders in a way we don’t see overseas. As we were riding around the track we could feel a wave of sound; it was absolutely spectacular.”

Despite the bitter sweet finale, it was a fantastic result for the men’s team pursuit line up as a 3:59 means they are competitive internationally at the highest level. Things look promising on their road to Tokyo. Perhaps as a testament to how far the Canadian program has come fans may recall last year when Canada rode New Zealand at the Track World Championships, the NZ squad caught the Canucks in the qualifications.

Hugo Barrette was on fire as well delivering another positive Canadian story as he raced a superb men’s Sprint tournament before falling short in the bronze medal final. Barrette may have suffered in the bronze medal round as each of his two previous matches went to Decider matches so he entered the final with an extra two rounds of sprinting in his legs.

In the end British rider Jack Carlin claimed the bronze in two straight rides. However it was still a solid and very promising result for Barrette, who hails from Iles Madeliene QC, as he has not often made the final round at the World Cup level before.

BMX cross-over athlete Amelia Walsh competed in the women’s Keirin, gathering valuable experience as she eventually finished 10th. The event was won by German superstar Kristina Vogel, who made a clean sweep of the sprint events at Milton. Vogel was also an extremely gracious champion spending time with kids around the track and posing for pictures with fans.

The women’s Madison was an exciting event and the Canadian pairing of Stephanie Roorda and Jamine Duehring fought hard the whole distance to finish narrowly off the podium in fourth place behind Great Britain, France and New Zealand.

Vancouver rider Aiden Caves represented Canada in the men’s Omnium and had an up and down tournament placing 5th in the Tempo Race but exited early in the Elimination Race. He rode an inspired Points race that closed out the Omnium, taking a lap with three other riders before attacking in the closing laps to solo to win the final event. These heroics moved the young Canuck up to 10th place in the final overall standings. Danish rider Niklas Larsen took the win over Oliver Wood (Gbr) and Gael Suter (Sui).

As the Milton World Cup came to a close it was two thumbs up for the organizing committee and Cycling Canada who did a fantastic job marking the first time Canada has hosted a Track World Cup event since 1998. The stands were filled for almost the entire time and the initiative to bring in school kids on Friday night was inspiring.

Everyone in the cycling community seemed excited to have the marque event in town. Team Canada athletes put on a great show for the large VIP area in the infield – many of whom were some of the initial donors that helped to make the Velodrome possible.

Milton has a 3-year mandate and the World Cup field this past weekend had many big names but was slightly smaller than normal because the qualification period for Olympic selection has not yet opened. Notably absent were the Australians who are focusing on a home Commonwealth Games.

Next year with the Olympic qualification process underway the Milton World Cup is set to grow organically for the next two years, building up to the Tokyo Games. With Canadian athletes poised for top results as well, the sport is on the threshold of an exciting era in Canada.

Day 3 Results here.