March 11, 2007 (Villa la Angostura, Argentina) — All three athletes, who represented Canada at the 2007 Pan American mountain bike Championships this weekend, are bringing home a medal: two gold and one silver. National coach Michel LeBlanc stated, “Mission accomplished!” following the mountain bike cross-country event held Sunday, March 11, in Villa la Angostura, Argentina, with two victories and a silver medal for Canada:

– Max Plaxton, U23, 1st
– Geoff Kabush, Elite, 1st
– Seamus McGrath, Elite, 2nd

“It’s one of the best courses I have ever raced. I did the job I had to do. I am satisfied. I cannot wait to race with the elite,” said Canada’s Max Plaxton (Victoria, BC), who has been dominating the under 23 event for two years in a row. Plaxton was very confident and had foreseen a very challenging but exciting race after riding the 6-km race course in Argentina (see race preview report: )

Geoff Kabush of Courtenay, BC, also scored a first-place finish in the elite category: “I am very pleased with the whole team’s effort today. I was unsure if I would be recovered after finishing the 13-day Tour of Cuba in February; but obviously the racing paid off. It was a very close race and luckily I timed things perfectly,” said Kabush.

“I’m happy with the first race of the season. I’m really happy to get the points for Canada. It was an excellent course,” added Seamus McGrath (Victoria, BC), who followed team mate Kabush to finish in second place (elite).

The Pan American Championships takes place each year and represents the International Cycling Federation’s (UCI) designated continental championship. For Canada to earn international points at this competition was essential for Olympic qualification.

“The guys did a great job to score the maximum possible number of UCI points in Argentina, which gives us a lot of peace of mind for the Olympic qualification process. There’s a long way to go yet, but this result makes me confident we will secure two men’s cross-country spots for the Olympics, as long as our men continue to perform at this level,” said CCA High Performance Director Kris Westwood.