January 20, 2006

Pat Hickey

Genevieve Jeanson was the queen of Mount Royal, but we'll never know how good she could have been.

Jeanson, who won the women's World Cup cycling race over Mount Royal an incredible four times in five years, has been barred from competitive cycling for life after testing positive for EPO at a race last summer in Altoona, Pa.

Jeanson told La Presse she would fight to clear her name - she is scheduled to appear at a spring arbitration hearing in the United States - but she also said she was retiring from competition at 24, an age when most elite cyclists are heading into the prime of their careers.

The Lachine cyclist's career has had as many ups and downs as the Mount Royal course where she forged her reputation as a gutsy fighter who took on the best women cyclists in the world and won. But her latest brush with controversy raises the possibility that her victories were less the product of hard work and God-given talent, and more the result of a chemically induced boost.

The failed test in Altoona is actually the first of her career, but it goes into the books as a second offence because she failed to appear for a test at a 2004 World Cup race in Belgium. She escaped a suspension for that offence, but was fined.

The timing of the latest test was a bit of a surprise. She tested positive after the prologue of the Tour de 'Toona, a relatively minor race.

"It almost sounds as if she wanted to get caught," one cycling insider suggested.

"It's not as if winning in Altoona is like winning a gold medal."

Jeanson's test showed an abnormally high level of EPO, a drug that promotes the development of oxygen-rich red blood cells.

Her lawyer noted that a second test 60 hours later showed a normal level of EPO and it was impossible to have such a variation in the two tests. That argument was rejected by U.S. officials, who have jurisdiction over Jeanson because she has been unable to obtain a racing licence in Canada since she was involved in a series of controversies, beginning with the 2003 world championships in Hamilton.

There were high hopes for Jeanson after she beat arch-rival Lyne Bessette of Knowlton for the Canadian road championship in Hamilton. But a prerace test showed that Jeanson had a dangerously high level of red blood cells and she was barred from competing.

While she was waiting to be reinstated, her name surfaced during an investigation into Dr. Maurice Duquette. The inquiry claimed that Duquette illegally prescribed EPO to a high-level cyclist. Duquette denied the cyclist was Jeanson.

But Quebec cycling officials used the inquiry to put pressure on Jeanson and coach Andre Aubut, a former paddling coach who was regarded as an outsider. They refused to give her a licence and she eventually obtained a U.S. licence in Arizona.

The licence wrangle forced Jeanson to miss the start of the season. Her frustration mounted after the missed test in Belgium. Jeanson was tested before the race and said she missed the post-race test because she was upset by the treatment she received and didn't expect to be tested again.

She surprised many by ignoring the controversy and defending her World Cup title on Mount Royal. Her dominating performance raised Canadian hopes for a medal at the Athens Olympics, but she fell apart at the Canadian championships and failed to make the team.

That failure reinforced the belief that her association with Aubut was a problem.While she seemed to relish the demanding training schedules prescribed by Aubut, she missed three world championships because of injuries. She and Aubut never grasped that while road racing is an individual sport, there is a necessary element of co-operation among teammates and rivals.

Last fall, Jeanson begged off from the championships because of fatigue, but the positive test at Altoona no doubt factored into her decision.

Kris Westwood, the director of high-performance programs, for the Canadian Cycling Association, said he hasn't received any notification of a ban. Jeanson is the highest-ranked Canadian road racer in the Union Cycliste International rankings at No. 29, but has been in the top 15.

Daniel Manibal, the organizer of the Mount Royal event, heard the news yesterday while in Boston on a business trip.

"It's a tragedy, but if she tested positive, it shows that we're doing what we have to do to give our sport credibility," Manibal said. While he's losing one of the top attractions for his race, Manibal noted that Jeanson and Bessette have inspired a crop of young stars, headed by Audrey Lemieux.

But Jeanson's legacy won't be that of a role model, rather one of a talented athlete who blew her chance for greatness.

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