October 15, 2006 (Balneario Camboriu, Brazil) — Canada’s Max Plaxton (CAN) of Victoria, B.C. and Mathieu Toulouse (CAN) of Montreal, Que. delivered world-class performances today at the Pan Am MTB Championships in Brazil when they finished first and second, respectively, in the U23 and Elite Men’s XC races.

Plaxton was the clear favourite in the U23 Men’s competition after he placed third overall and ahead of the Pan Am contenders at the UCI World MTB Championships last August.

Toulouse started off conservatively in the Elite Men’s race, but turned up the heat steadily to eventually finish second to Colombian Leonardo Paez (COL), who finished fifth at this year’s MTB World Championships in New Zealand.

The cross country racers duked it out on a difficult cross country course, which included some tricky climbs. The racers began on a pavement start loop and hammered along the coast through the forest before they crossed a road and hit a steep, open climb. Then they began the descent, losing altitude quickly in a slightly twisty downhill that spit them back onto asphalt and then into the woods again for a very steep, tip-of-the-saddle- style climb, followed by another fast descent. They ended the loop on the 4X course. The Elite and U23 Men both tackled five loops.