October 16, 2013 (San Francisco, CA) – Maghalie Rochette, a versatile 20 year-old elite athlete from Quebec, has joined the California-based LUNA Pro Team. She will don the coveted blue and white kit in January, 2014.
“I am pleased to announce that I will be racing with the LUNA Pro Team for the 2014 mountain bike and cyclocross season!” said Rochette in a team press release.
“I remember as a tiny nine year-old girl dreaming of being a LUNA pro. Now, 11 years later, I still look up with admiration to the current riders of the team, so it is really an honor for me to be part of this great organization. It is a dream come true to ride in the same kit as some of my idols.”
“I am twenty years old, I live near Montreal (QC –CAN) and I speak French. I’ve been riding bikes since the age of four. I tried mountain biking when I was very young, and competed in triathlons until I was 18.”
“Last year, I tried a couple of road races and I started racing cyclocross. I decided to start mountain biking in April, 2013 thinking it could help me for cyclocross, but I had no idea I would fall in love with the discipline as much as I did.”
“When I am not on my bike, I love to surf, ski, swim, do yoga, run, cook and bake new recipes and take camping trips with my friends, family and my boyfriend, David. I started university this past September and I am currently studying [exercise science with a specialty in] athletic therapy at Concordia University in Montreal. Other than that, I am happy trying new things, and I love eating every kind of food. I am always daydreaming about new exciting (but maybe useless) projects… I love what I do and I really enjoy life in general!”
“I really look forward to the next season with LUNA and I am more than excited to learn, race, and enjoy every second of this incredible ride. I am very grateful that I have been given such a great opportunity, and thanks to Clif Bar and the Luna Pro Team family!”
Rochette’s recent results include fourth place at the 2013 Sea Otter cyclocross event in Monterey, California, sixth at Pro XC Tour in Vermont, 10th place at Cross Vegas in Nevada, and ninth at the U-23 UCI World Championships in South Africa. The LUNA Pro Team and Clif Bar welcomes Maghalie to the family!
“The LUNA Chix Pro Team is the most successful, longest-running team in the history of professional MTB and XTERRA racing,” according to its website. “LUNA Chix Pros have been in the Olympics, won world championships in MTB and XTERRA; the overall UCI MTB World Cup title three times; five U.S. National XTERRA Championships; and countless national MTB and cyclo-cross championships in the United States, Canada, and the Czech Republic.”
We have not yet seen a LUNA Pro Team announcement for 2014, but this is what the team is looking like:
– Georgia Gould
– Katerina Nash
– Catharine Pendrel
– Danelle Kabush
– Maghalie Rochette
– Suzie Snyder
– Teal Stetson-Lee
– Shonny Vanlandingham
– See more here.