Kirchmann Named to Canadian Cycling Team for Rio
Manitoban road cyclist Leah Kirchmann has been chosen to represent Canada at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics this summer. Kirchmann is one of 19 athletes who will make up the Canadian cycling team.
“It is a dream come true being named to the Canadian Olympic team!” said Kirchmann, who has been working hard toward this goal for many years. “It’s so nice to finally have that persistence and determination pay off. I can’t wait to represent Canada on the world’s biggest sports stage.”
While the road to Rio hasn’t always been a smooth one for Kirchmann, the 26-year-old athlete seems to take challenges in stride. “Like any journey,” she said, “there have been setbacks and disappointments along the way, but these things have made me the strong and resilient athlete I am today.”
Despite her considerable achievements, Kirchmann hasn’t forgotten her Prairie roots. “I owe a huge thank you to everyone who played a role in my athlete development and helped me achieve this goal. I now compete internationally at the professional level, but my love of sport and cycling in particular began in Manitoba.” Kirchmann started in the Kids of Mud program at age 13 before moving on to develop through the Manitoba Provincial cycling team, and beginning work with Canadian Sport Centre Manitoba.
“The close-knit Manitoba XC ski and cycling communities provided me a perfect place to develop as an athlete, with coaches, friends and teammates constantly pushing me to improve. My parents deserve the biggest thank you of all, instilling a love of sport and movement from a young age, and facilitating all of the opportunities that came my way.”
The Team Canada announcement comes on the heels of the athlete’s third-place finish at Canadian Nationals. Of the competition in Ottawa, Kirchman said, “I was happy to land on the podium with a bronze medal this past weekend. I was a bit tactically limited since I had no other teammates in the race. In the end, there was not enough cooperation and organization in the chase to bring back the solo rider, so we had a bunch sprint for the remaining podium positions. It was fantastic to have the rare opportunity to race on Canadian soil in our nation’s capital.”
The road cycling competition at the Olympic Games will be held on August 6 and 7 at Fort Copacabana and August 10 in Pontal.
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About CSCM:
The Canadian Sport Centre Manitoba (CSCM) was created as one of the many legacies of the 1999 Pan American Games held in Winnipeg. Today, CSCM is the hub for high performance sport in Manitoba. A proud member of the Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network, CSCM works to provide a world-class, multi-sport daily training environment for athletes and coaches through integrated services and programs in the fields of physiology, strength and conditioning, nutrition, psychology and support services.
For more information, contact:
Jeff Powell
General Manager, Canadian Sport Centre Manitoba
Direct Line: 204.474.7148 | Email: media@cscm.ca