World champions, Pan Am champions, World Cup winners and so much more: 2023 was another sensational year for mountain biking in Canada. While its impossible to add every exceptional moment to the list, here are 10 incredible performances that stood out from a thrilling year of racing.
Isabella Holmgren and Marin Lowe’s 1-2 finish at world championships
Isabella Holmgren’s name made many headlines this year but, at world championships, it was a trio of Canadian juniors putting the maple leaf on XCO podiums. Marin Lowe was right by Holmgren’s side, taking silver in the junior women’s XCO. Just hours later, Ian Ackert, their teammate on Stimulus Orbea, earned bronze in the junior men’s XCO race. Holmgren may have taken top honours, and the rainboy jersey, but there’s a bright future for all three in the years to come.
Jackson Goldstone’s 2023 elite World Cup debut
After a successful junior career of his own, Jackson Goldstone made a wildly impressive step up to elite racing in 2023. While balancing some significant health challenges serious enough to require mid-season surgery, Goldstone started with a podium, then earned a World Cup win, added several more podiums, and briefly wore the leader’s jersey. All of that would have been a sensational debut for any junior, even one as hotly anticipated as Goldstone. But a season-ending win at home in Canada at Mont-Sainte-Anne rocketed a memorable elite debut into the stuff of legends.
Jenn Jackson and Gunnar Holmgren’s matching Pan Am Games gold medals
After the World Cup season wrapped up, a quartet of Canadians made a quick turnaround, heading to South America for the Pan American Games. Two ended up winning gold. Gunnar Holmgren and Jenn Jackson both launched off the front of the field to take big wins in Brazil, earning Canada’s first and second medals of the 2023 Pan Am Games.
Carter Woods’ World Cup wins
After first finding the top podium step at a World Cup in 2022, Carter Woods made his way back several more times in 2023. Now with Giant Factory Off-Road Team, the Vancouver Island racer landed an impressive perfect weekend in Val di Sole, winning the under-23 Short Track…
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