Van den Ham wins Canadian 'cross championships

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Kabush, McConnell in the medals

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Podium: L to R - Geoff Kabush, Michael van den Ham, Mark McConnell(Image credit: Rob Jones)

Michael van den Ham (Garneau - Easton p/b Transitions Lifecare) finally won his first Elite title on Saturday at the Canadian Cyclo-cross championships in Sherbrooke, Quebec.

The Elite men's race was wide open, after the retirement of 2016 champion Jeremy Martin. Alberta's Mark McConnell (Hot Sauce Cycling) went to the front on the opening lap, joined by multi-time national champion Geoff Kabush (Scott Sports - Maxxis) and Rio Olympian Raphael Gagne (Cannondale 3Rox Racing). However, Michael van den Ham (Garneau - Easton p/b Transitions Lifecare) moved up quickly to join the leaders. Gagne faded and Kabush couldn't manage the pace of the other two. When van den Ham attacked at the midpoint in the race it proved to be the decisive move, and the B.C. rider rode away to take his first Elite title. Kabush put on a late surge to take second ahead of McConnell.

"It feels amazing," said van den Ham. "I've gone into the last three Nationals ranked number one, so, to be honest, this feels like a weight off my back. It feels good to finally get the maple leaf jersey; I've been dreaming about it for a long time. I didn't have a great start, so I decided to sit tight for a lap or two and follow the front group. I could see Mark [McConnell] was starting to make mistakes, and I could ride the run up, that was my secret weapon. I got five seconds and then just rode it steady."

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Michael Van Den Ham (Can) Garneau - Easton p/b Transitio0:58:43
2Geoff Kabush (Can) Scott Sports - Maxxis0:00:29
3Mark Mcconnell (Can) Hot Sauce Cycling0:01:05
4Raphael Gagne (Can) Cannondale 3Rox Racing0:01:15
5Craig Richey (Can) Garneau - Easton p/b Transitio0:01:16
6Evan Mcneely (Can) Ride With Rendall p/b Biemme0:01:23
7Leandre Bouchard (Can) Bh Sr Suntour Kmc0:01:33
8Peter Disera (Can) Norco Factory Team0:01:43
9Derrick St John (Can) Van Dessel p/b Hyperthreads0:02:20
10Mathieu Belanger Barrette (Can) Pivot Cycles Ote Canada0:02:57
11Isaac Niles (Can) Garneau - Easton p/b Transitio0:03:51
12Sjaan Gerth (Can) Mariposa Cycle Racing Team0:04:05
13Osmond Bakker (Can) The Bandits Cycling Team0:04:52
14Marc Andre Daigle (Can) Garneau - Easton p/b Transitio0:05:15
15Peter Mancini (Can) Independent0:05:21
16Sylvain Jean (Can) Independent0:05:34
17Anton Varabei (Can) Toronto Hustle0:06:12
18William Goodfellow (Can) Veloselect0:06:51
19Patrick Chartrand (Can) Bromont Represent0:07:20
20Ryan Dewald (Can) Team Skyline0:07:48
21Chris Barson (Can) Coachchris.Ca/Joe Rouseau/Garn0:08:13
22Parker Bloom (Can) Broad Street Cycles p/b Stucky0:08:55
23Edouard Tougas (Can) Independent0:09:26
24Richard Machhein (Can) Team Giant VancouverRow 23 - Cell 2
25Phil Riopel (Can) Ridley's CycleRow 24 - Cell 2
26Michael Dalterio (Can) VeloselectRow 25 - Cell 2
27Guillaume L. Walsh (Can) VeloselectRow 26 - Cell 2
28Xavier Perreault (Can) Accro VéloRow 27 - Cell 2
29Jean-Philippe Thibault-Roberge (Can) Trek Cyclocross CollectiveRow 28 - Cell 2
30Jan Goh (Can) Collechf De Course BikvriousRow 29 - Cell 2
DNFWilliam Blackburn (Can) Velo 2000 / Peak CenterRow 30 - Cell 2
DNFBryan Tyers (Can) Lakeside Storage CyclocrossRow 31 - Cell 2
DNSScott Fitzgerald (Can) Mariposa BicyclesRow 32 - Cell 2

 

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