GLASGOW, Scotland – Among the 130 cyclist names to the Canadian team last week for the UCI Cycling World Championships is a strong group of 16 Para athletes ready to make their mark at this historic event which started with qualifying rounds Wednesday.
Dubbed the “Super Worlds”, all the events in the sport of cycling including road, track, BMX mountain biking and others are converging on Glasgow for a 12-day cycling extravaganza, the first ever event of its kind.
The Para cyclists will compete on both the track and the road in all the Paralympic Games events as well as additional track races such as the Omnium and scratch race. According to the UCI, there are estimated to be 200 athletes from 40 nations for Para track and 400 riders from 59 countries for Para road.
The Canadian team includes Paralympic medallists Keely Shaw of Midale, Sask., Shelley Gautier of Toronto, Charles Moreau of Victoriaville, Que., and Calgarians Michael Sametz and Kate O’Brien.
Also with Paralympic Games experience are Joey Desjardins of Hawkesbury, Que., Alex Hyndman of Blenheim, Ont., Nathan Clement of West Vancouver, and Mel Pemble of Victoria.
Two of those athletes have their Paralympic experience in other sports. Clement was a finalist in Para swimming at the 2016 Games and Pemble raced in Para alpine skiing at the 2018 Winter Games. O’Brien was also a member of the 2016 Olympic cycling team before her accident.
Other team members are Louis-Albert Corriveau-Jolin of Sainte-Claire, Que., Tarek Dahab of Beloeil, Que., Kara Douville of Calgary, Alexandre Hayward of Quispamsis, N.B., Matthew Kinnie of Riverview, N.B., and visually impaired riders Carla Shibley and her guide Meghan Brown of Calgary and Lowell Taylor of Lethbridge, Alta. and his guide Ed Veal of Queensville, Ont.
Hayward, Pemble and Shaw will compete on both the track and road at the worlds.
Previously in Para cycling, the track world championships and road world championships were separate events held annually.
In 2022 at the road worlds in Baie-Comeau, Que., Canada won seven medals with Clement earning silver in both the time trial and road race. Shaw, a Paralympic Games medallist in Tokyo, took bronze in both events, Desjardins placed third in the road race, Moreau was a silver medallist in the time trial, and Gautier added bronze in the time trial.
A couple months later at the track worlds in France, Pemble took gold in the scratch race and Omnium and O’Brien raced to silver in the 500-metre time trial.
The track events in Glasgow run from August 3-8 and the road races are August 9-13.
In Para cycling there are four groups of riders: those with a physical impairment that can ride a standard bicycle (C1 to C5 classification), those with lower limb impairments who use hand cycles (H1 to H5), those with impairments that affect their balance who use tricycles (T1 and T2), and visually impaired riders (category B).
This event counts towards Paris 2024 Paralympic Games qualifying, with riders earning points for their results. Country quota spots for Paralympic Games cycling will be based on overall results and rankings from a number of events taking place prior to June 30, 2024.
For more information visit: CyclingWorldChamps.com.
