WomensCycling.net
WomensCycling.net
Team News
November 2002
MAGALI
LE FLOC’H TEAMS UP WITH RONA
Montreal,
November 19, 2002 – Team RONA is proud to announce that French cycling
champion Magali Le Floc’h will join the team in 2003.
At
27, Magali Le Floc’h is one of the best road racers in France and currently
first in the French Cycling Federation’s national standings. Despite a season
curtailed by her studies and a training injury, Magali won the 2002 National
Championships and earned excellent results at the Tour de l’Aude (15th in GC,
three stage podiums) and the Trophée d’Or (8th in GC), as well as taking
seventh place in the Zolder World Championships. She won the Coupe de France in
2001 and distinguished herself with a GC victory and a stage win in the 2001
Tour de la Drôme, stage wins in the 2000 Tour de l’Aude and Tour de Bretagne,
and a sixth place in the Sydney Olympic Games. Originally from Meaux, just east
of Paris, Magali now lives near Reims and was the Champagne Ardennes regional
Champion from 1998 to 2001.
Magali
has been involved in competitive cycling since 1990, when she earned her first
victories as a cadette. This year she finished her degree in sports
training at the National Institute of Sports and Physical Education (INSEP),
where she has taken up a teaching position instructing young trainers.
Throughout
her career, the tall, slim cyclist (5’ 10½”, 128 lbs.) has raced almost
exclusively under her national colors. She is enthusiastic about joining Team
RONA. “It was my friend Catherine Marsal who first made contact with RONA’s
team manager André Aubut,” says Magali, who has raced only once in North
America, at the HP Women’s Challenge in 1999 (won by Jeannie Longo). “Of
course, I had heard of Geneviève Jeanson – I saw her race at the Sydney Games
and at the Flèche Wallonne in 2000. I had also seen Melissa Holt race at Zolder.
I can’t wait to meet my new teammates. And I’m really excited about racing
in Montreal – I hear the ambiance is fantastic!”
“Magali
will add even more depth to the team for 2003,” team manager André Aubut
added with great satisfaction. “She’s an excellent sprinter, but she can
also climb reasonably well. So she’ll contribute to the team’s success in
several ways. And she’s now a mature racer, so her experience will be a great
asset. On paper, the 2003 edition of Team RONA is the strongest in our short
history. I’m raring for the season to get under way so we can see how it will
all play out on the road!”
Team
RONA is one of only two Canadian women’s cycling teams in the Elite category
recognized by the International Cycling Union. In addition to Magali Le Floc’h,
the team includes four Canadians (Geneviève Jeanson, Andrea Hannos, Carrie Tuck
and Erinne Willock) along with New Zealander Melissa Holt, German Karen Bockel,
Catherine Marsal from France and American Kristen LaSasso.
RONA
is the leading distributor and retailer of hardware, renovation and gardening
products in Canada.
Team
RONA receives
equipment and sponsorship from several manufacturers, including Colnago,
Biemme, Shimano, Michelin, Mavic, Diadora, Limar, Selle Italia, Speedplay, ITM,
Look, CatEye, Tacx, Finish Line and Club Médico-Sportif.
