Jeanson's coach blows off a little steam

By RYAN PYETTE -- Winnipeg Sun SYDNEY - Genevieve Jeanson is considered by many to be the best young cycling talent in the world.

But after the 19-year-old from Lachine, Que., finished 11th in the women's seven-lap, 120-km road race yesterday, her coach wondered if she wasn't being held back from greatness.

Andre Aubut said because the road race depends so much on team tactics, the Canadians erred in not picking Jeanson, who he views as a faster sprinter than Winnipeg's Clara Hughes and Lac Brome's Lyne Bessette, to make the final Canadian charge.

''We saw it happen again from the countries that won, so it must work,'' said Aubut. ''They planned to set it up so their sprinter could make a move at the end.

''Genevieve is the fastest sprinter of the three right now, and I asked her, 'How are they going to do the sprint at the end?', and she said, 'Just like the Canadian championships.'

''That's Hughes, then Bessette, and then Genevieve.

''Fine. But they never came up with a plan if Clara was at the back, and that's what happened.''

Jeanson felt she could've won a medal if Hughes remained among the leaders.

''Her experience would've helped a lot,'' she said. ''My legs felt good, I could've made it.

''If I would've changed something, it was at the end. I think I hesitated, and moved too late. I would have made my move earlier. And that's where Clara would've helped.

''So many things happen during a race. The plan changes so much.

''But because teams like the Dutch and Australia sent their sprinter ahead, it was tough.

''In Canada, we don't do that because we don't really have one sprinter above the rest.''

Aubut was upset because the night before, head coach Eric Van Den Eynde called a meeting and didn't invite him.

''It was an hour-and-a-half long,'' said Aubut, ''and when Genevieve came back, I asked her what was said, and she said, 'Not much.' So that means she wasted an hour-and-a-half of her time.

''I'm a teacher, and when the principal has a meeting, he has a list of things to talk about. Then asks if there's any questions. Genevieve is 19-years-old. She's not going to say, 'Let's do things my way.' ''