January 17, 2010 – Despite being relatively new to the team pursuit, the Canadian women’s team of Laura Brown, Steph Roorda, and Tara Whitten turned heads by winning gold at round three of the Track Cycling World Cup in Cali, Colombia on December 12, 2009. In a display of smooth teamwork, Brown, Roorda, and Whitten clocked 3:27 for the 3000m race, defeating a strong American team in the finals. All three riders attribute their success to the Canadian track program and this result is indicative of what Canada’s track team can achieve this season and looking ahead to the 2012 Olympic Games in London. We caught up with Brown, Roorda, and Whitten as they prepare for the fourth and final Track World Cup in Beijing, China on January 22-24.

Congratulations! How did it feel to win gold in Cali?
Laura Brown: Thank you! It felt incredible. Sharing a World Cup win not only with team mates, but friends and family was truly special.
Steph Roorda: Winning the gold medal was great. We rode a faster time than expected, and for me that was the best part of the day.
Tara Whitten: It was an incredible feeling to win a World Cup, and to share that exhilaration with two other equally exhausted and ecstatic team mates was really special.

How does this result compare with other results in your career?
SR: Winning a gold medal at a track cycling World Cup is the best result of my track career to date.
LB: I feel safe saying that this is the best result of my career for sure.
TW: I have been on the podium at the World Cup level before, but standing on the top step and hearing ‘Oh Canada’ was a whole new experience.

What were the goals for the women’s team pursuit at the start of the 09/10 Track World Cup series and was this result expected?
SR: The gold medal was not expected. This is the starting point for the team pursuit, and the goals are to go faster and ride an improved technical race.
TW: Because we are so new to this event, our goal for Cali was to ride technically well, to ride as a team, and to establish a baseline from which we could progress as we look toward 2012. That being said, we were aiming for a time near 3:30, and for a medal.
In riding a technically smooth 3:27 and coming away with the gold medal, we exceeded all of our expectations!
LB: We accomplished our goals: we rode faster than planned, smoothly, and technically well. Coming out with a medal (gold!) was a huge bonus.

Has this win changed your goals for the upcoming Beijing World Cup and the Copenhagen Track Worlds?
TW: The result in Cali definitely boosted our confidence, but we still have a lot of work to do. Women’s team pursuit is a relatively new event internationally, and we know that the level will continue to increase as we get closer to London. We need to use our experience in Cali to allow us to become even faster over the rest of the season.
SR: I do not believe the result in Cali has changed goals for the races coming up. We are looking for improvement; the gold in Cali has just confirmed what is possible for the team pursuit in the future.
LB: The win showed us what we are capable of, but there is plenty of hard work ahead for 2012 and beyond. Progressing by riding faster and technically well for the upcoming World Cup in Beijing and World Championships in March is the goal.

What are the most challenging aspects of this event?
TW: I think the most challenging aspect of the team pursuit is determining the best strategy for three people to go as fast as they can together. It requires everyone on the team to trust each other, and to be honest about how they are feeling on a particular day. Everyone needs to be completely spent at the end of 3km, but not a moment earlier! That takes some fine-tuning.
LB: There are not many opportunities to race the team pursuit. There are four World Cups in the season, plus the World Championships. The Commonwealth Games are in 2010 as well. But thinking ahead to the 2012 Olympics, there are only a handful of opportunities to race together, so training is critical for getting faster as a collective unit.

The three of you looked like you worked together seamlessly. Did the race play out to plan as smoothly as it looked?
LB: Yes, it was smooth! It looked smooth, it felt smooth, and our lap times were even.
SR: We rode the first half on pace, the last half according to the other team. That was part of why it was so successful for us: we made a plan and rode to that plan.
TW: We really rode the best race that we could on that day, and that is an amazing feeling! The race felt smooth (albeit painful!) from beginning to end; our exchanges were solid, our pacing was almost perfect. There was a moment in the final when I did the one thing you are never supposed to do in a pursuit: I looked across at the American team. At that point we were neck and neck, but I saw a split open up in their team and I knew we had it.

What important factors contributed to your success in Cali?
TW: There has been a complete shift in the Canadian track program over the past year, and our success in Cali is evidence that the new program is working! We now have a team, we come together at training camps, we have support staff, and we have developing riders coming up. Cali was only a first step – there is more to come from the Canadian track team over the next few years.
SR: The most important factor contributing to our success are the staff that work with the track team. All of the people working with us, either at the LA camps or World Cup races, create an unbelievable atmosphere that is amazing to be a part of. Their enthusiasm and passion matches the athletes and that is what makes it a great thing.
LB: The Canadian track team and staff is such an integral part of what we do, from the massage therapists/chiropractors, videographers, mechanics, coaches, coordinators and soigneurs at our training camps and races, to having Richard Wooles on board with us. It is an amazing program to be a part of and all their time and energy invested in us has greatly contributed to our success. Anyone who wants to be a part of what we are doing should contact our awesome track coordinator, Petrina Tulissi, at track@canadian-cycling.com.

All the best this season and with your future goals.
LB, SR, TW: Thanks.