Five Canadian cyclists are challenging Cycling Canada's decision not to send a women's team pursuit squad to this year's UCI Track World Championships in October, escalating the dispute to arbitration.
The CBC reported on Wednesday that Skyler Goudswaard, Fiona Majendie, Jenna Nestman, Lily Plante and Justine Thomas are appealing to the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada in a bid to have the decision overturned and the women's team reinstated for the championships, scheduled for October 14–18.
The men's team pursuit program is unaffected and remains set to compete.
Cycling Canada defended its position, calling it “a performance-based decision informed by objective, evidence-based analysis.”
“While difficult, it was made in the best interest of the program's long-term success,” the federation said in a statement.
The decision has cast doubt over the women's team pursuit pathway to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, with the world championships in Shanghai serving as the first Olympic qualifying event.
Majendie, one of the riders appealing the decision, voiced her frustration in a recent social media post.
“The Canadian women's track team is where 100 per cent of the Olympic medals have come from in the last 30 years,” wrote Majendie, a member of Canada's team pursuit that finished eighth at the Paris Olympics two years ago.
“Since the last Olympics, the women's team have continued to outperform or equal the performance of the men's team.”
Majendie said the team had never been given objective performance standards or told that if it did not meet standards, the program would be at risk of being cut.
Cycling Canada's decision drew swift criticism on social media, including from Canadian Clara Hughes, a six-times Olympic medallist in cycling and speed-skating, who called it “a massive bummer.”
“Not necessary and inexcusable. Shame on Cycling Canada for this,” Hughes wrote.
Canada has traditionally been strong in the women's team pursuit, winning Olympic bronze medals in 2012 and 2016 and finishing fourth at the Tokyo Games in 2021. Canada is currently ranked 12th in the women's team pursuit and 13th in the men's event.
Cycling Canada said results during the current Olympic cycle “were not trending towards medal winning potential.”
“In addition, performance during competition and training did not indicate that these gaps were likely to be closed in time for the LA2028 Games,” it added.
The federation said it is “taking deliberate steps to strengthen athlete development moving forward,” through investments in the Junior Track World Championships in August, among other competitions.
