Competitive track cyclist Youssef El-Akhbari believes the borough ought to consider incorporating a velodrome into its proposed sports complex. (Photo : Courtesy)
Add velodrome to sports complex: cyclist
The city's expanding bike path network makes it easy to ride a bike outdoors in the summer, but apart from the occasional diehard, nary a cyclist ventures out onto the icy streets of Montreal once the cold season arrives.
Saint-Laurent resident Youssef El-Akhbari would like to change that. An engineer by trade, El-Akhbari has taken up competitive track cycling again, a sport he had to abandon 18 years ago, in part because of a lack of training facilities available in Quebec. He believes cyclists would flock to the sports complex that the borough intends to build if it were also to include an indoor cycling stadium.
"In the summer we're spoiled, but in winter we're forced to stop [training]. It's too bad because we get out of shape. Many people practice the sport, but it would also be a way for people to discover it," said El-Akhbari, noting that many of the most accomplished track cyclists in the country come from Quebec. "Many are young people under 18. To me, they are future athletes, and it's a shame they can't practice here year round."
Sports complex
The borough recently announced its intention to apply for government funding to subsidize the construction of a sports megaplex in Marcel Laurin Park. It would include a swimming pool, gymnasiums and a 269 m indoor running track, around which, El-Akhbari believes, it would be possible to build a banked cycling track with an incline of about 50 degrees.
El-Akhbari, who won bronze at this year's Quebec Cup in his skill level, says he already has investors lined up provided a location can be found. "I even have someone who would provide the wood for the track," he added.
The idea might prove to be a tough sell, however. "It's not part of the priorities that have been targetted or identified for the sports complex. We're talking several million dollars more that we would have to spend," said borough spokesman Paul Lanctôt.
The proposed $28 million complex is partly aimed at providing appropriate training grounds for elite athletes in local sporting clubs. However, Lanctôt points out that the overall objective is to address the sports needs in Saint-Laurent, where current facilities fall short.
"At the outset, [the complex] is for youth and the citizens. Whereas not everybody is able to cycle in a velodrome," he said.
Not many velodromes
If the idea doesn't pan out, El-Akhbari has his eye on an abandoned hangar on Jules Poitras Blvd. where the local tennis club use to practice. Meanwhile, he will continue to train at the outdoor Bromont velodrome, one of only two in Quebec, which closes during winter months. The other is the Louis Garneau Velodrome near Quebec City.
"I'm better off than some people [who come to train in Bromont] all the way from the Saguenay. There are even people from Alberta," he said.
The velodrome built for the Montreal Olympic Games in 1976 was converted into the Biodome in 1992. There are nine velodromes in Canada. The only indoor track cycling facilities in the country are the Forest City Velodrome, a 138 m track in London, Ont, and another in Burnaby, BC.
Météo: Montréal, 6 juillet 2008 / 20°C
/ Généralement ensoleillé
/ Vents: 15 Km/h / Humidité relative: 60 % 
Steven Guilbeault - 
