July 16, 2013 (Lachine, QC) – For the second time in two weeks, Simon Lambert-Lemay (Garneau-Québécor) finished first as he claimed the victory at the seventh stage of the Mardis cyclistes de Lachine Jean Coutu. He stopped the clock at 1:00:32 in the 50km men’s pro-elite race – it was a nice gift for Lemay’s 23rd birthday.

“Of course it’s a nice birthday gift. I didn’t have a party or receive any presents yet, so this is a good beginning,” joked Lambert-Lemay.

Pierrick Naud (Garneau-Québécor) finished second followed by Martin Gilbert (independent) in third. The 2012 champion, Jean-François Laroche (Fantino Mondello/Cycles Régis), finished fourth.

Despite Lambert-Lemay’s two consecutive wins, it is still Naud who remains in yellow, leading the general classification with 718 points; Simon Lambert-Lemay follows closely with 677. Laroche is third with 592 points. The series winner is hard to predict with three more stage races to go in the 36th season of the Mardis cyclistes …

It was a very warm evening in Lachine with humidex readings of about 40C, but there was no wind and the pavement was dry. The pace was fast, but a little shy of the all-time record of 58:02. On the start line there were 80 men and two women, Veronique Labonté (CSM Epinay) and Catherine Desserault (Stevens). Another famous woman cyclist, Lyne Bessette, was there as a spectator.

Other results
In the women’s 24km race, it was again Élisabeth Albert (Rocky Mountain Lessard Bicycle) who won, for the fourth time in as many races. Marie-Soleil Blais (Infinit Canada/Cyclepower) finished second, followed by Catherine Ouellette (André Cycle-Kaycan-RDS) in third. In the general classification, Rosalie Cardin-Houde (IAMGOLD-Specialized) still leads with 323 points, but Albert is on her wheel with 251; Ouellette rounds out the top 3 with186 points.

Thierry Kirouac Marcassa (VCL-André Cycle) again dominated the men’s cadet 24km race with his seventh consecutive win; obviously he also leads the general classification with 375 points. Jean-François Soucy (Amos) stood on the second step of the podium while Miles Eastwood (Team CHCH- National Cycling) was third. Eastwood was not there for the award ceremony because he had to head back to Toronto, but Soucy was there even though he faced about as long as a drive north to Amos.

The earliest race of the evening was the hottest and both the minime boys and girls showed tenacity in the face of extreme heat. Griffin Schwartz (Independent-RP) won the 16km boy’s race ahead of Gabriel Drapeau-Zgoralski (VCL-André Cycle) whileTristan Guillemette (Vélo Mauricie) finished third.  Schwartz now has 394 points while Drapeau-Zgoraliski has 299. Guillemette is in third with 220 points.

Among the girls, Charlotte Tousignant (Espoirs Laval Primeau Vélo) won the 16km race, followed by Laurie-Anne Grenon (Dynamiks de Contrecoeur) in second and Emma Delisle (VCL-André Cycle) in third. Tousignant now leads the series with 370 points; Laurie Jussaume (Dynamiks de Contrecoeur) has 294 while Grenon has194 points.

The next race is Tuesday, July 23, around LaSalle Park in the Montreal borough of Lachine. The first race starts at 5:30 p.m. and the men’s pro-elite race is at 7 p.m. It is free to watch the bike races.

Results (brief)
1. Simon Lambert-Lemay (Garneau-Québécor)
2. Pierrick Naud (Garneau-Québécor)
3. Martin Gilbert (Ind)
4. Jean-François Laroche (Fantino Mondello/Cycles Régis)