One of Canada’s top medal hopes for 2023 UCI cycling world championships will be on the sidelines, not the start line in Fort William this week. Jackson Goldstone made the call to focus on recovering from a recent surgery instead of competing in Scotland.
The young Canadian is already a junior world champion (2021) and leading the World Cup standings in his first year as an elite. Goldstone won the last World Cup round before world championships, back in Val di Sole on month ago. That made the Syndicate racer one of the top prospects for a medal, or a win, in Fort William this week.
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Goldstone won in Val di Sole racing through an ongoing appendix issue, though. After stepping into the World Cup leader’s jersey, he and the team made the decision to skip Red Bull Hardline to get surgery to hopefully fix the problem for good. The problem started earlier in the year after a crash during training. It returned later in the season.
The Canadian phenom will now focus on fully healing so that he can be ready to defend his lead in the World Cup standings when that series resumes at the end of August in Vallnord, Andorra.
There are several other Canadian medal prospects on the downhill team alone. Finn Iles was second behind Goldstone in Val di Sole one month ago. Bodhi Kuhn won the junior men’s World Cup in Italy and currently leads the World Cup standings. Gracey Hemstreet has pushed closer and closer to her first elite podium all season after a stellar junior career. Brock Hawes set the fastest time of any racer, junior or elite, on his way to winning the junior national title in Fernie, B.C.
When downhill wraps up, an impressive cross country squad will step up to take their turn fighting for the rainbow jerseys in Glentress Forest, Tweed Valley.
Here’s how – and when – to watch mountain bike events at 2023 UCI cycling world championships.
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