When Magdeleine Vallieres made historical past with a shocking breakaway victory to assert Canada’s first elite highway race rainbow jersey in Kigali final September, it despatched a ripple impact that reached 1000’s of kilometres to her nation’s west coast, Richmond, British Columbia, the place rising expertise Nadia Gontova watched in tears, already aspiring to observe in her wheel path.
Gontova was purported to be on the beginning line in Kigali with the Canadian crew to help Vallieres, however was sidelined in her restoration from iliac artery surgical procedure. She watched the stay streaming of the race, as a substitute, and the end excessive of the cobbled Côte de Kimihurura on the difficult 15.1km metropolis circuit, with Vallieres solo and crossing the road with the win.
“I do not know her properly, and I used to be watching it stay, and I believe I like, I cried. I used to be emotional to see that it is potential,” Gontova instructed Cyclingnews in a cellphone interview.
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“I see her in races within the peloton; she’s all the time such a tough employee for her crew, and I believe she’s such a well-deserving champion. It is fairly unimaginable simply to see that it is potential. You do not have to be one of many huge favourites to go and win an enormous race … yeah, that is cool.”
Gontova has taken inspiration from Vallieres’ triumph as she makes her personal step as much as the WorldTour with Liv-Jayco-AlUla in 2026, after a steep trajectory that noticed her racing with native crew Crimson Truck Racing, which led to alternatives with Roxo Racing, DNA Professional Biking and Winspace.
Gontova had gained the longstanding Redlands Traditional, completed runner-up on the Tour of the Gila, and positioned second on the Tour Féminin Worldwide des Pyrénées.
She carried out properly in mountainous terrain within the early-season Spanish races in 2025, but it surely was her success on the Tour de France Femmes, the place she completed tenth on the ultimate stage to Chatel and twenty third total, that led to a number of contract gives from top-tier programmes.
She finally determined to simply accept a cope with Liv-Jayco-AlUla as a result of she felt it was a crew of all-rounders with extra alternatives to develop in a variety of races. “I spoke to Jayco, it appeared like it could be a very good match,” she stated.
“The crew is aware of I am a climber, so I believe I am blissful to race something, and I am blissful to do totally different races, however the Tour was an unimaginable race. I am actually pleased with how I used to be capable of race it, however I positively had a tough Tour in lots of methods. So I might actually love to return and hopefully have a little bit of a smoother week,” she stated.
“I am fairly new to the peloton, although, so I believe it is good to have the ability to have totally different experiences; each working for a crew and having some totally different sorts of alternatives reasonably than simply becoming a member of a crew the place they’re in search of one thing actually particular.”
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Gontova continues to be recovering from Iliac artery surgical procedure and can miss the early-season racing, however anticipates making her debut with Liv-Jayco-AlUla earlier than the Ardennes Classics in April.
After a primary full season on the WorldTour, she can be hoping to safe a spot on the Canadian crew on the UCI Street World Championships in Montreal in September – a course routed across the famed Mount Royal.
“I might actually, actually like to go. It is positively an enormous purpose for my subsequent season to make the World’s crew, have a great experience there, and have the ability to contribute to the crew,” Gontova stated.
She could be lining up on residence soil and racing for the crew of the defending champion, and stated it could be “a reasonably cool crew to be part of”, additionally noting that Vallieres’ victory is a reminder to “not ever depend your self out” even when the course won’t particularly go well with her skillset.
“Perhaps being extra of a climber, World Championship programs do not go well with me as a result of they do not typically have tremendous lengthy climbs, however [Vallieres’ victory at Worlds] is simply inspiring and fairly cool to see, and hopefully inspiring for lots of different Canadians as properly.”
