May 24, 2004 – Many Canadians racing at the first World Cup event of the
season in Madrid, Spain had a bit of rough ride. With everyone vyying for
Olympic spots, the competition was fierce. The men’s field was massive with
187 starters. The start was key, as the great number of bodies on the
course made it difficult to move up. Unfortunately Canada’s riders were
nowhere to be found in this first World Cup of the season.

Filip Meirhaeghe (Specialized) won by 1:18 over Roel Paulissen
(Siemens/Cannondale). Julien Absalon (Bianchi/Agos), who charged hard off
the start, placed third. Top Canadian was Ryder Hesjedal (Subaru/Gary
Fisher) in 24th place. Mathieu Toulouse (Gears Racing) rolled in at 46th
and Ricky Federau (Gears Racing), who raced with three staples in his calf
due to an injury during training, placed 81st. Roland Green (Trek/VW)
crashed and broke his rear derailleur early in the race and was unable to
finish.

In the women’s race, Alison Sydor (Rocky Mountain/Business Objects) started
hard and got in an early attack. She placed 4th, the best Canadian result.
Gunn-Rita Dahle (Multivan Merida) won the 32-kilometre race with Irina
Kalentieva (Multivan Merida) in second and Ivonne Kraft (Ghost Int’l
Racing) in third. Marie-Hélène Prémont (Oryx) managed to squeeze into the
top 10.

Elite Men

1. Filip Meirhaeghe (Specialized) 2:00:24

2. Roel Paulissen (Siemens/Cannondale) at 1:18

3. Julien Absalon (Bianchi/Agos) 1:35

4. Lado Fumic (T-Mobile) 1:47

5. Christoph Sauser (Siemens/Cannondale) 1:47

24. Ryder Hesjedal (Subaru/Gary Fisher) 6:48

35. Seamus McGrath (Haro/Adidas) 8:15

46. Mathieu Toulouse (Gears Racing) 9:48

81. Ricky Federau (Gears Racing) 14:54

121. Geoff Kabush (Maxxis) 21:39

123. Kris Sneddon (Kona/Clarks/Les Gets) -1 lap

DNF Roland Green (Trek/VW)

Elite Women

1. Gunn-Rita Dahle (Multivan/Merida) 1:34:47

2. Irina Kalentieva (Multivan/Merida) at 1:41

3. Ivonne Kraft (Ghost Int’l Racing ) 2:39

4. Alison Sydor (Rocky Mountain/Business Objects) 2:49

5. Annabella Stropparo 2:53 (AS Sperafico/Olympus) 2:53

10. Marie-Hélène Prémont (Oryx) 4:56

16. Kiara Bisaro (Gears Racing) 7:15

26. Chrissy Redden (Subaru/Gary Fisher) 9:28

28. Trish Sinclair (Gears Racing) 9:38

43. Sarah Noble (Rocky Mountain/Business Objects) 12:17

56. Melanie McQuaid (Team Ford) 19:03

DNF Martina Feldmann