Every day is different, and some days are special, and yet one element of every day is the same. A little under ten years ago, Hugo Houle lost his brother Pierrick in a hit-and-run incident in their native village of Sainte-Perpétue, midway between Montreal and Quebec. Grief has been a companion in all the days since then.
It was, inevitably, with Houle on his day of greatest celebration on Tuesday afternoon, as he soloed to victory in Foix on stage 16 of the Tour de France. It was his first victory as a professional, it was Canada’s first stage win in this race since Steve Bauer in 1988, and it was dedicated to Pierrick’s memory.
“He was two years younger than me, and he was my biggest fan,” Houle said. “When I finished fourth in the under-23 Worlds in 2012, he sent me a video to congratulate me. After the day I lost him, there was nobody to share things like that with. There was a gap. Of course, when things like this happen in life, it takes a few months to move on and to move forward.”
Pierrick Houle, like his brother, had been a triathlete as a teenager, and they had competed against one another as siblings do. At 19 years of age, Pierrick went out for a run one evening and he never came back, hit by a car that fled the scene. As well as the grief of that loss, Hugo Houle endured the profound trauma of searching for his brother with his family on that December evening.
“The guy ran away and left him on the side of the road. Me and my family had to search for my brother. I found him about three hours later, dead,” Houle said. “When I came to the scene, they were doing cardiac massage. I took his hand and I saw the blood go from his ear and his mouth and I knew he was dead.”
A few weeks later, Houle was on a flight to France, to begin his WorldTour career at AG2R La Mondiale. For those first months as a professional, he was present in body rather than in spirit and it showed in his results. Another team, perhaps, might have ushered him towards the exit, but Vincent Lavenu has always prided himself on being something of a paterfamilias. Houle was given time to find his way again, first as a grieving young man and then as an emerging cyclist.
“I remember I was in Paris-Roubaix, and I just didn’t know what I was doing because I was pretty shocked from this event. It took me a full year to get back to normal,” Houle said. “This team was unbelievable, they took care of me. I was a young professional, and they could just have said, ‘Next.’ It took a few years to get back to a good level, but they gave me a lot of time to recover from that. Now I am where I am because they gave me time to recover from my brother’s death.”
Bauer and the Canadian connection
Houle spent five years with AG2R and then four with Astana, gradually eking out a place for himself in the WorldTour peloton. At the end of last season, he joined the Premier Tech exodus from Astana, moving with the Canadian sponsor to Israel Premier Tech. The owner of Houle’s new team, Sylvan Adams, is a Montreal native. Canada’s greatest ever cyclist Steve Bauer is his directeur sportif and the country’s current leading light, Michael Woods, is a teammate.
Houle had Woods for company in the break of the day on Tuesday, and his compatriot would place third on the stage to complete a remarkable afternoon for Canadian cycling. When Houle launched his winning move ahead of the final haul up the Mur de Péguère, Woods policed the break as it splintered behind, tracking Matteo Jorgensen over the summit. A crash for Jorgensen ended any faint prospect of Houle being caught, and the Quebec native had Bauer, winner in Machecoul in 1988, in his radio earpiece to reassure him through the final kilometres.
“It’s been a year since I’ve seen my parents, my family, because I have to be in Europe to race, and to win a stage in the Tour is what motivated me,” Houle said.
“I’m happy I can win for the Canadians and I’m also happy I had Steve Bauer behind me in the car. He was on the radio telling us: ‘Enjoy boys, enjoy.’ I was still going full gas and he said, ‘You’ve got this, take it easy, man.’ It was nice to have the time to enjoy it. I just hope it won’t take 34 years for another Canadian to win on the Tour.”
Houle crested the Mur de Péguère alone at the head of the race, but not without company. On the drop into Foix, his brother Pierrick’s memory travelled with him. In that sense, at least, it was a day like any other. “That was my motivation, to win for my little brother,” Houle said. “And today I did.”
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
