Profil
Fact Sheet
Date of birth: November 26, 1987
Age: 22
Height: 5'11
Weight: 165 lbs
Hometown: Cap-Rouge, Québec, Canada
Residence: Montréal, Québec, Canada
Studies: Mechanical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal
Current team (2009): Kelly Benefit Strategies
Coach: Pierre Hutsebaut
Contact : david_veilleux@hotmail.com
Career Highlights
- Winner of the 2005 Tour de l'Abitibi
- 2006 to 2009 time-trial and 2006, 2008 road National Champion
- 5 participations at the World Championships ('05 through'09)
- Winner of the Tour of Pennsylvania, Tour of Elk Grove, Kelly Cup and Stillwater criterium in 2008
- Winner of the Presbyterian Invitational and 10th in the U23 time-trial World Championships in 2009
- Canadian National team member since '06
Goals for the 2010 season
- Top 3 best young rider classification at the Tour of California
- Top 5 Philadelphia International Championship
- Best young rider at the Tour de Beauce
- Top 3 Canadian national championships TT and road
- Top 15 in the ProTour races in Québec and Montréal
Biography
Throughout my youth I have always been very active. I practiced and competed in soccer, baseball, judo, basketball and Alpine skiing. However, my main sport growing up was our national sport, hockey, which I practiced from Magh to Pee-Wee. I also had a great interest for motocross, but I never had the consent of my parents to practice this extreme sport. I thus turned to mountain biking because as far as I could tell, my mountain bike was the closest I could get to my own extreme motor bike. I spent a lot time riding around my neighborhood in search of trails and jumps. I thought about racing, however, I wasn't aware that a structured circuit existed in the area. However, when a small sport store, called Junior Sport, opened its doors close to my house, racing was no longer just a thought. Its owner immediately set up a small mountain bike club where I was introduced to training and racing.
Thus, my career as a cyclist began. I started Pee-Wee in 1999, at the age of 11. In cycling, the category is determined by the age on December 31st, always making me a year younger than the other racers of my category. Now, it's not really a factor any more, but at the beginning of adolescence, especially for a boy, there is a big physiological difference from one year to another. I finished 4th at my first mountain bike race, and I realized I had a certain potential and natural ability. I thus continued to cover the area and take part in the regional races that year. The following year, I participated in some provincial races. However, it is in the Cadet category where I joined the entire provincial circuit.
Another pivotal point in my career was the discovery of a new cycling program at the "Sport and Studies" school in Lévis. Without hesitating, I applied to the program, not realizing a problem in transportation logistics. Since I was living in Cap-Rouge, I needed to find a way to get from home to school, 30 kilometers away. After researching many options, my parents and I decided the ferry across the St-Laurent River offered the best solution. Despite these complications and the adjacent expenses, my parents always supported me and I am very grateful to them.
Consequentially, at age fourteen I joined the "Sport and Studies" and met my first coach, Francis Paradis. The program offered all cycling disciplines (road, mountain, track), but Francis had much more knowledge and experience on the road then on the mountain. I, at the time, was not interested in road cycling or learning much about it. I was completely focused on mountain biking. However, Francis often made us watch famous road races and told various anecdotes, and soon after spending a winter in his company my interest in road racing was stimulated. I had always been zeroed in on mountain biking and underestimated the dynamics of the road. This new found excitement for another cycling discipline was unexpected and inspirational.
The next summer, at my second year Cadet, I decided to try road cycling throughout my mountain bike season. My first race was a regional race in the industrial park of St-Augustin. I went on the gun, I drafted the whole pack during the first half of the race, I made a useless attack and I finished almost last, completely exhausted. Despite everything, I loved my experience, and from that moment I wanted some more. I finished my mountain bike season as planned, but I bought a road bicycle to race in the Québec city area. That same year, I had the chance to take part in the "Jeux du Québec" in both disciplines. As the season went by, my interest for mountain biking was decreasing. I was more and more attracted by the challenge road racing offered, and I had the feeling that this discipline would suit me better.
The next winter, I decided to devote all my time to racing on the road. My father bought me a brand new Louis Garneau road bike and I joined the rows of the new team Élicycle-Sport Experts with Jean-Yves Labonté as sport director. My association with this "flamboyant" individual, as well as with Louis Garneau himself, was very valuable. Through all his "rocambolesques" stories, Jean-Yves knew how to transmit his passion for cycling, and taught me how to ride and read the race.
My first season went very well, and it only took me two races to climb on top of the podium. I will always remember this first gold medal in Bellefeuille. That year, I also took part in the Canadian Championships and the famous Tour de l'Abitibi for the first time. I did not perform well there, however, the experience was very valuable.
The following year, I was better trained and I wanted to add a national title to my resume. I had better results at Nationals, but they were not at the height of my expectations. A little later, I took part in the Tour de l'Abitibi with the national team and I won the general classification of the Tour. That event taught me how to race a stage race and how to manage the pressure coming from the media. The same year, I also took part in my first Junior World Championships in Austria. The season ended, and my assiduous drive and perseverance were rewarded because I gained the Québécois Championships over road and against-the-watch.
I decided to change coaches and continue with Pierre Hutsebaut at the dawn of the following season. I didn't have many expectations regarding my results in my first season of Category 1-2 because from Junior to Cat 1-2, there's an great difference in the length and difficulty of the courses. As Eric Van Den Eynde, a former national team coach, once said to me: "You know David, one is Cadet, one is Junior, but one becomes Sénior." Therefore, I thought I would have a harder time racing in that category, and thus gave myself at least a year before having objectives of performance. However, to my own surprise, I had a very smooth transition between the two categories by winning the U23 Canadian Champion title in the time trial and on the road. Crowning my great season, I again qualified to take part in the World Championships.
In 2007, I made the jump to the professionals with the team Jittery Joe's. When I look back at the objectives that I had set for myself in '06, this transition to the pro ranks greatly exceeded my expectations. In fact, I signed this contract with Jittery Joe's more quickly than planned since it offered me an established structure and a very complete racing calendar.
The following season, I decided to continue my career with the team Kelly Benefit Strategies/Medifast. In 2008, I had a very stunning season when I won some important races like the Tour of Pennsylvania, the Tour of Elk Grove as well as the U23 Canadian championships in the time trial and on the road. In 2009, I thus decided to stay with the same team because the atmosphere is very good there and the sport director is very qualified.
For the moment, I still intend to race a few more years on the American circuit. The level of competition is rising and the sport is healthy. Moreover, the American circuit is close to my house and I travel without too much jet lag. It is also very important for me to continue my baccalaureate in Mechanical Engineering at the École Polytechnique de Montréal. My priority is to continue my studies even if it sometimes proves to be difficult to combine school and sport. Obviously, Europe remains the center piece in cycling and if I see that I have the potential to race there, I will probably give it a try. For the moment, I must continue to personally develop at the athletic level through the many races and hours of training the practice of cycling requires.
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August 2012 |  |
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