April 9th, 2004 – The CCA is happy to announce two new events on the national BMX calendar, scheduled for June 12 and 13 in Kingston, Ontario, and organized by the Kingston BMX Association.
These events fill an important gap in the national calendar: they are the only eastern races early enough in the season to be used to select riders to the BMX world championships in Valkenswaard, The Netherlands, July 23-25.
As a result, the CCA has modified the selection process for the funded positions at the world championships. The CCA will now fund five junior athletes to the worlds and they will be selected as follows: – Defending world junior champion Samantha Cools is automatically selected. – One junior man and one junior woman will be selected based on the results of the Ridge Meadows Western Canada Cup events on June 5-6. Selection is open to riders holding CCA licenses from Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Yukon. – One junior man and one junior woman will be selected based on the results of the Kingston event. Selection is open to riders holding CCA licenses from Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador only.
Because junior BMX athletes often race in different categories, special selection motos will be included in each event so the junior-age athletes can be directly compared to one another. The men and women will each race two motos each day, with moto points totaled over the two days determining which rider will be selected. In the event of a tie, a tie-breaker moto worth double points will be run on the Sunday. All junior-age (born in 1986 or 1987) athletes will be eligible for these motos at no extra charge, as long as they have paid entry fees for another event in the racing program each day. The scheduling of these motos will be at the discretion of the organizer, and will depend on the number of riders entered.
In the event that no athletes enter the selection motos, or if the athletes are clearly uncompetitive, the CCA reserves the right to reduce the team size.
Selected athletes will be responsible for their own travel arrangements and accommodation at the worlds, but will receive the following from the CCA: – $1,300 for western athletes and $1,000 for eastern athletes, to cover airfare – Free entry into the appropriate junior world championship event – A national team jersey – Staff support at the worlds (manager and coach) from July 20, including a van to get to and from the competition site – Assistance, where possible, in getting to and from the worlds site and Amsterdam or Brussels airport
The CCA has reserved a limited number of beds at the StayOkay youth hostel in Valkenswaard, which is close to the race track, at a special rate of 32 euros ($48) per day, including breakfast, a boxed lunch and dinner. Athletes can buy these beds from the CCA on a first-come, first-served basis (some beds will be held for riders who are selected at the selection events). Please contact the CCA as soon as possible if you are interested.
As in past years, the BMX worlds are open to all self-funded athletes as well. While the CCA encourages only competitive athletes to enter, there is no selection process in place this year. However, because the entries must be done by the CCA, all interested athletes must fill out an entry form and send it, with payment, to the national office before May 1st. Athletes who pay and are subsequently selected to funded positions will not have their payment processed or will be reimbursed. The registration form can be found here. Please note that the cost of jerseys has been revised downward thanks to special prices on new clothing from Louis Garneau.
Athletes who hope to be selected to a funded position should still send in a form so they can still travel to Valkenswaard on a self-funded basis.
It is extremely important that each entry be accompanied by a photocopy of the rider's license and passport. If you lose either document while in The Netherlands, the CCA will be able to help arrange for a quick replacement.
The CCA staff at Valkenswaard will do what it can to help all Canadian athletes at the worlds, but please remember that our priority is the championship classes and the funded athletes. Each rider is responsible for bringing a bicycle in top mechanical condition and the appropriate replacement parts.