The majority of Canada’s top cyclists will be conspicuously absent from the World Road Championships in Wollongong, Australia, September 18-25.
After Hugo Houle, who had announced his package at The Press on the eve of the arrival of the Tour de France, Michael Woods, Guillaume Boivin and Antoine Duchesne all preferred to skip their turn. They deplore having to bear the cost of the plane ticket to get to the event.
The fatigue of the season, the long flight to the antipodes and the need to collect points to avoid the relegation of his professional team Israel-Premier Tech (IPT) are three reasons given by Houle to explain his withdrawal.
But the request of the Canadian federation to travel at its expense particularly annoyed, not to say shocked.
“We don’t see the point”
“Cycling Canada cannot afford to send the athletes,” reiterated the Tour stage winner in an interview Thursday. So it’s entirely at our expense. Of course, that doesn’t interest me. Guillaume Boivin refused the invitation, Antoine Duchesne too. If we have to pay, we don’t see the point [d’y aller]. It will be interesting to see who is going to subsidize the federation. »
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One thing is certain, it will therefore not be his teammate Boivin. Best Canadian with a 17e place on the very selective route of Louvain last year, the 33-year-old cyclist had nevertheless expressed his strong desire to redeem a difficult season on another circuit which suited him in Australia.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ISRAEL-PREMIER TECH Guillaume Boivin
” Yes, [ça m’intéressait], but apparently in Canada, we don’t have money to pay for plane tickets and things like that for our athletes, he said on the phone on Friday. »
“So I decided that I didn’t want to pay out of pocket to go to the World Championships. At the age we’ve reached, we’ve already paid in our careers [pour participer à de tels évènements]. »
With the seasons we’ve had and the results we’ve had in recent years, I found it a bit disrespectful to ask us to pay. I decided not to go there because it’s expensive, but also on principle.
Guillaume Boivin
After his fall on the third stage of the Vuelta, Woods, another member of IPT, prefers to focus on the Italian classics, including the Tour of Lombardy on October 8.
“With the long trip to Australia, it would be complicated to run well in Italy,” said the bronze medalist at the 2018 Worlds and fifth at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. “Also, it’s less motivating [d’y prendre part] knowing that the race is entirely financed by the runners. »
Held back by costs
Duchesne had said yes on the sidelines of his second Tour de France. But his broken finger on a fall in the second stage of the Tour du Poitou-Charentes, August 24, led him to change his mind. Relatively battered, the member of Groupama-FDJ is doing everything possible to be as fresh as possible at the Grands Prix Cyclistes de Québec and Montréal, on September 9 and 11. It is not impossible that he will end his season at the end of the race on Mount Royal.
PHOTO THOMAS SAMSON, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES Antoine Duchesne (left)
That said, Duchesne admits to being “a bit held back” by the cost of the trip.
“I find it quite crazy, he said from France. Especially if we consider the performances that the elite men have achieved over the last four or five years. We were always told that we didn’t have a budget because we weren’t performing. There, we perform and we don’t have a budget yet. »
I understand there are dips, but I can’t wait to see how many people from Cycling Canada are invited there to shake hands…
Antoine Duchesne
With his 23e place in the nations standings on August 16, Canada will be entitled to four starters in Wollongong for the elite men’s road race on September 25.
“If half of the best decide not to go, it shows that the Canadian team, deep down, doesn’t care about the results,” said Duchesne. We will send those who wanted to pay and we will do with that. Afterwards, they will say that there are no results. »
Especially, he adds, that Canada should be part of the “outsiders” for the podium with representatives like Woods, Houle and Boivin. “It hasn’t happened for several years. I understand that it’s an expensive world championship and that everyone has to pay their share, but the fact remains that it’s the number one event and that we have riders to win. It’s still a pity. »
Canadian champion Pier-André Côté hesitated before accepting a selection known for a long time. He only decided on Wednesday. The representative of the American formation Human Powered Health was also cooled by the high cost of the trip.
“It’s difficult, I was really undecided,” admitted the athlete from Lévis who will line up at the Maryland Classic this Sunday. “Spending $5,000 for a plane ticket for a one-day race, everyone wondered. That’s why so many people refused. I had to think about it. »
Since he receives funding from Sport Canada to absorb this kind of expense, he judged “in principle” that he could not decline this invitation for his second Elite Worlds. His teammate Nickolas Zukowsky, from Sainte-Lucie-des-Laurentides, will accompany him to Wollongong.
Canada is not the only cycling nation that will be deprived of its best riders. Ireland canceled its participation outright due to high travel costs and a tight budget. New Zealand will also have to do without some of its professionals in Europe who refuse to assume part of the cost of the plane ticket, according to a recent article by the specialized site. cyclingtips.com.
“Incredibly expensive”
Cycling Canada assures that it is doing everything in its power to reduce the fees charged to athletes to participate in its various international projects in all disciplines.
“To date, several athletes have chosen not to participate in this year’s World Championships due to professional team commitments,” said Scott Kelly, chief athletic officer at the federation, in writing. We are also aware that cost is a concern for athletes. We are also concerned about it. »
“This year’s Road World Championships in Australia are incredibly expensive and speaking with many other national cycling federations, we are not the only ones facing these increased costs,” he added. We are committed to fielding teams in each category, and with a larger team this incurs additional costs. »
Cycling Canada has earmarked $110,000 for the Wollongong Worlds (accommodation, personnel, transport and luggage), or one-third of the annual road competition budget. Kelly expects that amount to rise “given the rising cost of almost everything related to international travel.” If athletes in the elite category must pay for their flight, those in the junior and U23 categories must also pay $1,250 in “project fees”.
“We continue to look for ways to provide additional funding for this year’s World Championships. And we continue to be both communicative and transparent with athletes about the challenges associated with these increased costs,” he concluded.
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