613 in Paris: Cyclist Ariane Bonhomme pushing for Paris podium after finishing fourth in Tokyo

“613 in Paris” is our nine-part series profiling Olympic athletes representing Ottawa-Gatineau at Paris 2024. These written interviews, conducted before the competition, delve into each athlete’s experience with pandemic-era training, inspiration and community support, competition-day routines and rituals, and key elements to watch for in their respective sports.

Gatineau-born track cyclist, Ariane Bonhomme, rode into Tokyo 2020 as an Olympic rookie. Now that the training wheels are off, she’s leading a podium push alongside a trio of Olympic newcomers.

Gatineau’s Ariane Bonhomme celebrates at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track Nations Cup. Photo by Bojan Uzicanin via erinattwell/Instagram.

Apt613 connected with the 29-year-old cyclist—now residing in Victoria, B.C.—for a written interview amid training camp in Milton, ON, ahead of her trip to the Paris Velodrome. In the interview, Bonhomme recounts her earnest introduction to the sport, affirms her podium aspirations, and describes how dropping a squad member in Team Pursuit may be a winning strategy.

Responses have been edited for clarity and length.

 

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The two-time Olympic track cyclist began her sporting career around a different track—a speed skating oval. “I started with the Val-des-Monts Speed Skating Club, which introduced me to cycling,” says Bonhomme. Once the young speedskater switched to cycling, she pedalled forward and never looked back.

Bonhomme’s passion for the sport blossomed in her native Outaouais. “Gatineau Park is where my passion for cycling came alive and will forever be a special place in my heart, says Bonhomme. “I feel so lucky to have grown up as one of the first riders in the Cuisses Or youth club.” Those formative years would spin up international success for the rider, including a bronze medal in Team Pursuit at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The cyclist debuted in Tokyo 2020 as her squad’s youngest member and sole Olympic rookie. The group rode to a fourth-place finish in the Women’s Team Pursuit. She’s had to switch gears heading into Paris 2024—with Bonhomme, now the seasoned vet, leading a trio of teammates making their Olympic debuts. “My team and I are so motivated to get on the podium in Paris [2024],” says Bonhomme, “I push myself every day for them. It’s a true honour to share this journey with them.”

 

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Bonhomme recognizes that track cycling is as much of a team sport on the track as it is off. “I owe pretty much everything to The Cyclery and Vince Caceres,” says Bonhomme. “His support throughout my journey was second to none. I absolutely would not be able to do what I am doing without him and his support [and] I am forever grateful for that.”

While Bonhomme has acclimatized to pandemic-era training, she says “it has been a fun change to come into [Paris 2024] with a full racing calendar in our bag. It will be so great competing in front of a fully packed velodrome! This is what it is all about at the end of the day.”

Bonhomme will undoubtedly feel the buzz of excitement in Paris… or maybe that’s just the coffee she “love[s] starting [her] day with.” When competing, Bonhomme says: “I usually make myself [a coffee] in my hotel room with some beans from home. It gives me a sense of being at home and it feels cozy.”

Ariane Bonhomme in the Women’s Team Pursuit at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track Nations Cup. Photo by Michel Guillemette | photographie sportive (used with permission).

A podium placement at these Olympic Games would fulfill a lifelong ambition for Bonhomme. Her Olympic bio cites a “Grade 7 collage about her biggest dream, [which] included her face on a photo of Charles Hamelin [Canadian four-time Olympic gold medallist in speed skating] on the podium at Vancouver 2010.” Apt613 wondered what that might’ve looked like:

Standing atop the Olympic podium is a lifelong dream for two-time Olympic cyclist, Ariane Bonhomme. Photo via charleshamelin/Instagram and Ariane Bonhomme/Facebook. Supplementary images by freepik, juicy_fish, layerace, and D Sharon Pruitt. Edited by Kiefer Uuksulainen/Apt613.

Ariane Bonhomme enters the velodrome for the Women’s Team Pursuit on August 6, with the Final happening the following day. Bonhomme provides some insight for would-be velodrome viewers: “We start the 4km race with four riders, but our final time is taken after the third rider [crosses the finish line]. That means we are allowed to lose one rider during the ride, a strategy that most teams will use.”

Readers can follow Bonhomme’s Olympic return on Instagram.