October 04, 2017 (Milton, ON) – Legendary Giuseppe Marinoni and seasoned pro Ed Veal set new UCI Best Hour World Records to headline the inaugural Day of the Hour event presented by Mercedes-Benz Oakville as eight Master track cyclists delivered an astounding show of talent and panache at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario on Sept. 23.

Four world records and four Canadian records were set at the remarkable event that will go down in the annals of Canadian cycling as all eight riders demonstrated that the tradition of record-winning cycling is alive and well in the land of the red Maple Leaf.

“Feeling great, very happy and proud to have beaten the record,” said Marinoni who set a new Best Hour World Record of 39.004km for 80-84 UCI Masters. This was Marinoni’s second attempt to eclipse the distance of 38.657km held by Paul Martinez of France.

He was one lap short (200m) on Aug. 20. In 2012 he set the record for 75-79 year olds with a distance of 35.728km. The now famous film Marinoni: The Fire in the Frame tells the story of that victory.

According to film maker Tony Girardin, “In classic form, he had to wait about 3 hours to pee after the record for the anti-doping test. When all was done, he hit the 401 with his wife Simonne and they got home to Montreal at midnight.”

National team rider, Ed Veal, left it all out on the track to claim a Best Hour World Record of 48.587km for 40-44 UCI Masters eclipsing the standard of 48.411 km set by Jayson Austin from Sydney, Australia in Feb. 2013.

“It feels great but I can hardly believe it when I hear you say the words ‘new world record’. I missed it back in 2015 during the #EdsHour event and knew I had to come back so a bit of redemption and great to check that box,” said a smiling Veal.

The new UCI World Best Hour Record holders are:

Women
– Jane Emans, W35-39, 42.425 km/h
– Jody Levine, W45-49, 38.156 km/h

Men
– Ed Veal, M40-44, 48.587 km/h
– Giuseppe Marinoni, M80-84, 39.004 km/h

The new Canadian Hour Record holders are:

Women
– Bryn Currie, W50-54, 40.366 km/h

Men
– David Hainish, M30-34, 45.325 km/h
– Mike Nash, M50-54, 46.434 km/h
– Michael Kolesar, M65-69, 35.949 km/h

The riders and their efforts:

Jane Emans (37), of Milton ON, beat the existing UCI W35-39 World Hour Record of 42.116 km, previously held by Clarice Chung (35) of Great Britain, to claim the new record of 42.425 km. She completed 169+ laps, with a finishing speed of 19.380 seconds per lap. Since she is the first Canadian woman to attempt this category, she has established the Canadian record as well.

For Jody Levine (49), of Etobicoke ON, there was no existing UCI W45-49 record. Her performance on Saturday has earned her the distinction of being the first woman in the world to hold this honour, establishing both Canadian and World records of 38.156 km in the process, and filling in this blank in the UCI record books. She completed 152+ laps, with a finishing speed of 21.170 seconds per lap.

Ed Veal (42), of Newmarket ON, is a seasoned professional cyclist. His record winning attempt of 48.587 km earned him the distinction of beating the existing Canadian record of 45.189 km, set by fellow Day of the Hour athlete Mike Nash in 2011, as well as claiming the UCI M40-44 World record of 48.411 km, previously set in 2013 by Jayson Austin of Australia. Ed completed 194+ laps, finishing with 18.145 seconds per lap.

Giuseppe Marinoni (80 this year), of Terrebonne PQ, is a renowned cyclist and bicycle builder, the owner of Marinoni Cycles. With his new record of 39.004 km, he has succeeded in beating his own Canadian record of 38.334 km (set on Aug.19, 2017 in Milton), as well as the previous UCI M80-84 Best Hour Record of 38.657 km. formerly set by Paul Martinez (82) of France in 2016. At a final speed of 29.171 seconds per lap, Mr. Marinoni completed 156+ laps to set both records.

Bryn Currie (50), of Toronto ON, completed 161+ laps at 21.094 seconds per lap to establish the first Canadian record for this category at 40.366 km. Unfortunately, she fell short of beating the existing UCI W50-54 Best Hour record of 43.206 km recently set by Anna Davies (52) of Australia in March 2017.

David Hainish (32) of Milton ON, fell short of beating the existing UCI M30-34 Best Hour record of 48.234 km, very recently established (July 2017) by Ryan Davies of Great Britain. However, his effort of 45.325 km earned him the Canadian record for this category, completing 181+ laps at 18.972 seconds per lap.

Mike Nash (50), of Ottawa ON, established a Canadian record of 46.434 km for the M50-54 age category, by completing 185+ laps of the track at 19.136 seconds per lap. This effort was just shy of the existing UCI Best Hour Record of 48.892, currently held by Pascal Montier (53) of France, and set in 2016.

Michael Kolesar (66), from Mississauga — the organizer and driving force behind this event — has established the Canadian record of 35.949km for the M65-69 age category. He was unsuccessful in breaking the UCI World Best Hour Record of 44.271 km, recently updated by Robert Gilmour (65) of Great Britain in 2016.

Hour Record Attempts are held all over the world in UCI sanctioned velodromes, usually by an individual cyclist in an individual attempt. This was the first time that a group of cyclists decided to make attempts at one venue, on one day.

In this case, all eight cyclists were from Canada – specifically from the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The idea for the event grew from the desire of one man, Michael Kolesar, to attempt the Hour Record in his age category, and gradually drew interest from several other cyclists who all consider the Mattamy National Cycling Centre as their home track. This may become a larger event in future, hopefully giving other cyclists from all over Canada the opportunity to chase their own Hour dreams, setting Canadian and World records in many more age categories.

The Mattamy National Cycling Centre is a 250 metre indoor velodrome, built specifically for the 2015 PanAms and ParaPan Games, held in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area that year. It is only the second Olympic approved Velodrome in North America.

Jody Levine results here.
Jane Emans results here.
Michael Nash results here.
Giuseppe Marinoni results here.
David Hainish results here.
Bryn Currie results here.
Michael Kolesar results here.
Ed Veal results here.