It is with great regret that the CMA announces that there will be no Canadian Team participating in the “Olympics of Motocross” next month in Assen, Netherlands.
This eliminates our chance to build on the solid performance of last year in the United States, and deprives our riders of the rare opportunity to participate with the world’s best, at the most important motocross event of the year.
Sadly this is not the first time that a small number of people, who profess to love the sport and want to see it “grow” in Canada, has worked against the sincere efforts by the Canadian Motorcycle Association and its appointed Team Manager Carl Bastedo, to field a team.
Canada’s first appearance on the world stage, was at Hawkstone Park in England in 1964. The team consisted of Reg Bellerose, Norman Braden, Denis Mitchell and Rudi Zacsko. Participation in the years following was sporadic, mostly due to lack of funding for the project (a situation not unique to Canada), and on occasion because a rider(s) was not given permission by their sponsor to attend. It usually was explained as a business decision made because riders were contracted to race in Canada to sell motorcycles in Canada, which makes sense from a purely business perspective.
Now however, the world is a much smaller place and with live streaming, media websites and social media coverage of events such as the Motocross of Nations, a team attracts more at home interest than in the past.
Personal agendas and perceived injustices at the hands of the national federation should not prevent the riders from having this very important experience. It is a shame for Canada and its motocross community.
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