Governor General Michaelle Jean and 2010 Olympic hopeful Veronique Fortin unveil the Olympic torch at an event marking the one-year countdown for the 2010 Olympic games in Vancouver British Columbia, in Ottawa Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. On Friday Fortin recorded her first Canadian cycling victory in Milton, Ont. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Tom HansonTom Hanson/The Canadian Press
When she powered a bobsleigh to a gold medal on the Europa Cup circuit, Véronique Fortin of Saint-Georges de Beauce, Que., was called a brakeman. In fact, putting on the brakes was the least of her duties. Fortin was there for her strength.
Same thing when she won medals four times in track and field pentathlon and heptathlon as a Canadian university student, or when she won a silver medal in heptathlon in the 2007 Canadian track and field championships. Fortin, 31, is an all-round strong athlete.
That was on display Friday night on Saint-Jean-Baptiste day, when the Quebec-based rider
celebrated her first Canadian cycling victory, winning the women's elite road race at the Immunity-FX Canadian road championships (sponsored also by Canaccord Wealth Management) before a thousand fans.
"For me, there is an important proverb: before conquering the world, you have to be a champion in your own backyard," Fortin said.
Fortin overcame a stiff, steep 150-metre climb up the Niagara Escarpment eight times -- once each lap -- in the 103-kilometre night race in 3 hours 4 minutes 9 seconds. It was her first major win since getting serious about the sport of cycling.
"I really focused on this race. I knew I could do something special, and trained specifically for this course," Fortin said. "I am very happy...This race was very important for me. I planned all my training to be optimal here."
Fortin, an anesthesiologist by profession, can't do the obsessive training that fulltime cyclists do. She opted for a conservative strategy to stay in the peloton for the entire race, before making her attack in the last climb before the finish area.
"I hired a coach to be able to focus more on cycling. I am able to train, even with my job. What is tough is the racing. This week, I worked 80 hours at the hospital, and didn't believe I could win. Winning today is simply incredible."
"Véronique has some very natural physical capacities that I simply polished to attain our objective today, knowing it was possible for her to get the title. She's an athlete who has tremendous potential, at the beginning of what she can do," said coach Pierre Hutsebaut, former head coach of the Canadian road cycling team.
Hutsebaut coached cycling legends Steve Bauer and Louis Garneau, as well as current cycling stars in David Veilleux and Guillaume Boivin.
"She works really hard at the hospital, and it was a tough decision for her to dedicate more time to cycling. She will now enter some international races. She is part of the short-term future of cycling," said Hutsebaut.
Prior to arriving here for these championships, Fortin came twice to the race course to train with her teammates. She got the dividend of excellent course recognition that fit her powerful style. The escarpment course took its toll on the field. Only 46 of the 69 starters finished.
Lex Albrecht of Laval, Que., (Juvéderm-Specialized) finished second, crossing the line 18 seconds after Fortin, while Erinne Willock of Victoria, (Tibco To The Top) placed third.
Defending champion Joelle Numanville of Montreal, racing for Tibco to the Top was fifth. Time trial winner Clara Hughes of Glen Sutton, Que., was 10th and Omnium world champ and velodrome specialist Tara Whitten of Edmonton, riding for Tibco to the Top, was 21st, more than two minutes off the pace.
Among under-23 riders, Denise Ramsden of Yellowknife, NWT (Juvéderm-Specialized) captured her second Canadian title in as many days, taking home the victory with a time of 3:04:29.
The men's road race is scheduled for Saturday at 4pm, on the same course used by the women. The men will race 14 laps of the 12.8-km loop for a total distance of 180 km.