From Canadian Cycling Magazine –
Emily Batty (Trek Factory) defended the Canadian women’s elite national title at the 2017 cross-country mountain bike championships in Canmore, Alberta on Saturday, July 23. It’s Batty’s third career elite women’s title. Catharine Pendrel (Clif Bar Team) of Kamloops, B.C. was second with Haley Smith (Norco Factory Racing) of Uxbridge, Ont. rounding out the podium.
The 29-year-old from Brooklin, Ont. was locked in a neck-to-neck battle with Olympic bronze medalist Pendrel on the four kilometre circuit for most of the race. As expected, Canada’s top two riders battled for victory riding together until the final lap when Batty used a climb to put distance into Pendrel who was unable to follow the attack. While the two battled out front, Smith chased solo in third a position she would hold to the line.
