June 04, 2013 (Lachine, QC) – Pierrick Naud (Garneau-Quebecor) has won the Senior Men’s 50km race at the opening round of the 36th Annual Mardis Cyclistes p/b Jean Coutu series this evening in Lachine taking the victory over Ontario’s Anton Varibei (Jet Fuel/Norco) in second, with Jordan Brochu (Ekoi-Devinci) in third.

Pierrick Naud

Naud stopped the clock at 1:00:32, barely beating Anton Varabei (Jet Fuel)–a visiting rider from Toronto–in second and Jordan Brochu (EKOI Devinci) in third to the finish line.

“I was part of a break after the second intermediate sprint,” explained Naud. “On the last lap, those of us in the break group evaluated the situation and we all attacked.”

“I didn’t know where the finish line was and thought it was 25 metres further,” joked Varabei. His team was visiting in Montreal after competing last weekend at the Philly Cycling Classic in Philadelphia.

The 2012 series champion, Jean-François Laroche (Fantino Mondello/Cycles Regis) finished the stage in 11th position. Laroche, who works as a lawyer during the day, hopes to beat out many professional cyclists and capture his sixth series title in 2013.

The starting pistol was fired by Robert Piché, a Lachine resident and airline pilot who made headlines around the world in 2001, safely landing an Airbus A330 with 306 people aboard after the plane lost all power over the mid-Atlantic. Some 105 cyclists took off for 31 laps around LaSalle Park in Lachine. Windy conditions caused a relatively slow average speed of 49.5km but the weather was otherwise good with clear skies, dry pavement, and cool temperatures.

Among the women, it was Charlotte Tousignant (Espoirs Laval Primeau Vélo) winning, followed by Laurie Jussaume (Dynamiks de Contrec¦ur) in second and Laurie-Anne Grenon (Dynamiks de Contrec¦ur) in third. Thierry Kirouac-Marcassa, (VCL-André Cycle) won the junior men’s race and his club won a clean sweep of the podium with team mates Antoine Côté in second and Antoine Bouchard in third. Among the minime boys, it was Griffin Schwartz, (Independent-RP) finished first followed by Gabriel Drapeau-Zgoralski (VCL-André Cycle) in second and Tristan Guillemette (Vélo Maurice) in third.

An estimated 3,000 spectators watched the races on June 4. Tuesday, June 11 sees the next stage of the 10-stage series through Tuesday, August 6 around LaSalle Park in the Montreal borough of Lachine. The races begin at 5:30 p.m. and the senior men’s race starts at 7 p.m. All of this is free for spectators.

Elite men’s results (brief)
1. Pierrick Naud (Garneau-Quebecor)
2. Anton Varibei (Jet Fuel Norco)
3. Jordan Brochu (Ekoi-Devinci)