July 22, 2003 (Whistler, BC) – The Espoirs Men's race this past Sunday at the Tim Hortons National MTB Championships was raced within the same pack as the elite men as usual. Absent from the espoirs category this year was Ryder Hesjedal, now riding in the elite men's pack. This year, the race for the espoirs title came down to three riders: James Van-toever (PEI, Morati-Honeywell), Matthew Hadley (NB, Powerbar/Maxxis) and Kris Sneddon (Kona Clarks).

The first three laps Hadley was leading and was eventually caught by Sneddon and Van-toever on one of the climbs. Sneddon attacked the group in the singletrack and the boys tried to stick on his tail. Again, Sneddon attacked on the next climb, and this time he dropped his pursuers. This cat and mouse game continued until the next climb when Van-toever and Hadley caught up to Sneddon and Hadley attacked. Sneddon blew up and the two boys passed him. During this time Hadley's gears started skipping and Van-toever attacked, and this time, Hadley couldn't close the gap.

Van-toever, racing in his second national championships, was really ecstatic about his result, especially after last year's eighth place. “That extra half lap they made us do, I just thought I was going to die! I wasn't descending as fast as the others, so my strategy was that every time we came up to a descent, I got in front of them on the singletrack!” Van-toever hails from Prince Edward Island, and finished 10th overall in the elite men's category.

Hadley, another east coast rider from New Brunswick, was happy with his result but also acknowledge his mechanical difficulties. “The course is awesome, it really makes you take a beating, it would have been good for full suspension for sure, and I was riding a hardtail! My shifting was skipping all over the place, so I couldn't really power.” Other than those technical difficulties, Hadley rode a strong race strategically, and finished 11th overall in the elite men's category. “I made sure that I didn't burnout in the climbs, so I had enough to technically ride strong.” Although Sneddon fell back after his numerous attacks, he still finished in third place and 16th overall in the elite men's race.

This year the UCI has been discussing the creation of an official category for Espoirs Women in mountain biking for the MTB Worlds later this year. This consideration is in motion to make the transition from junior women to senior women categories a bit smoother.

The Canadian National MTB Championships created an espoirs category for the women this year for the first time in history. Anne-Marie Jobin (S.O.S. Velo Ski) from Quebec became the first woman to claim this title. Oakley's Julie Sanders was second, and Rocky Mountain rider, Jean-Ann McKirdy was third.

The espoir women's cross country race was held within the senior women's race on the Sunday of the Canadian Nationals. The Espoir women did quite well in the senior race, finishing 12th, 13th, and 14th, respectively.

McKirdy had this to say about the new category. “It's just great to have a bridge between junior and the pro category. It's a big jump coming from junior.”

Men's Results:
1. James Van-toever (PEI, Morati/Honeywell) 2:25.29
2. Matthew Hadley (NB, Powerbar/Maxxis) 2:25:53
3. Kris Sneddon (BC, Kona Clarks) 2:28:05

Women's Results:
1. Anne-Marie Jobin (QC, S.O.S Velo Ski) 2:26.43
2. Julie Sanders (QC, Oakley) 2:27.16
3. Jean-Ann McKirdy (BC, Rocky Mountain) 2:27.17