April 12, 2010 – The Canadian National Cycling Team’s U23 men took part in the Tour of Flanders, a UCI under-23 Nations Cup race on April 10th in Belgium. It is the first in a series of three races on the UCI Nations Cup calendar that the Canadian men will take part in. The U23 version of the famous professional race is 170km long and includes 17 climbs with several over rough cobbles sections.

The bad luck for the team began before the start of the race. Owen Harrison (BC), weakened by stomach trouble, had to opt out of taking the start. Michael Joanisse (QC) got caught up in a small crash at the beginning of the race but was able to jump on to a chasing group. Unfortunately, he was caught up in another crash, this time it was impossible to reach the bunch. Keir Place (ON), who felt good, had to stop at a bad time to change a wheel. The narrow lanes made it difficult for support vehicles to get to riders and he was not able to make it back to the peloton. Spencer Smitheman (AB) did very well; he was in one of the main breakaways during the race with 10 other riders. Once back in the pack, he was in a crash and damaged his shifter. This forced a bike change, but the delay made it impossible to catch the peloton. Jamie Riggs (ON) had some bad luck from the start that disrupted his rhythm on the tricky course. Finally, the youngest rider of the team, Antoine Duchesne (QC), did well for his first classic U23 race. But just before the final circuit, at km 110, Antoine broke his rear wheel in a cobbles section. After the wheel change, the young rider was not able to return to the front of the race.

Overall, the riders did well. The mechanical problems are part of bike races, especially during rough classics like the Tour of Flanders. This experience will certainly help in the future and they are now ready for Cote Picarde in France next Wednesday, April 14.