{{Short description|Canadian cyclist (born 1974)}} {{Infobox cyclist | name = Gina Grain | image = | caption = | full_name = <!-- if different --> | nickname = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1974|7|16|mf=yes}} | birth_place = Lachine, Quebec, Canada | death_date = | death_place = | height = 1.62 m | weight = 54 kg | currentteam = Retired | discipline = Road, track | role = Rider | ridertype = All-around | amateuryears1 = | amateurteam1 = | proyears1 = 1999 | proteam1 = Physical Culture | proyears2 = 2001 | proteam2 = 800.com | proyears3 = 2002 | proteam3 = Atlanta Velo | proyears4 = 2003–2004 | proteam4 = Victory Brewing | proyears5 = 2006 | proteam5 = Giant Pro Cycling | proyears6 = 2007 | proteam6 = Team Express Copy | proyears7 = 2008–2010 | proteam7 = Webcor Builders Cycling Team | majorwins = * Canadian Championships (Road) (2007) | medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{flagu|Canada}}}} {{MedalSport | Women's track cycling}} {{MedalCompetition|World Championships}} {{MedalSilver |2006 Bordeaux | Scratch }} {{MedalSport|Women's road bicycle racing}} {{MedalCompetition|Pan American Championships}} {{MedalBronze|2007 Valencia|Road race}} | show-medals = yes }}
'''Gina Grain''' (born June 16, 1974, in Lachine, Quebec) is a Canadian retired professional road and track cyclist.<ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |title=Gina Grain |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/gr/gina-grain-1.html |accessdate=October 19, 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020023009/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/gr/gina-grain-1.html |archivedate=October 20, 2013}}</ref> She won a silver medal in women' scratch at the 2006 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Bordeaux, France, and later represented Canada at the 2008 Summer Olympics.<ref name=gina-grain>{{cite news |last=Dheenshaw |first=Cleeve |title=Victoria's Gina Grain sole female Canadian cyclist |url=http://www2.canada.com/topics/sports/beijing2008/cycling/story.html?id=754772c6-6498-4aa3-9287-e38b9f70522a |work=Canwest News Service |publisher=Canada.com |date=July 5, 2008 |accessdate=October 11, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019215953/http://www2.canada.com/topics/sports/beijing2008/cycling/story.html?id=754772c6-6498-4aa3-9287-e38b9f70522a |archive-date=October 19, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Before retiring to focus on her personal life and kinesiology career in 2010, she raced with a number of Canadian, American and Hong Kong road teams.
==Racing career== Grain started her professional road cycling career as part of her mountain bike fitness training program with the British Columbia Provincial Team. She rapidly began excel at it and later received an invitation to join the 800.com pro cycling teams in 2001, following her short stints on Atlanta Velo and Victory Brewing for the next two seasons.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ofoto, Victory Brewing-Amoroso’s 2003 line-ups |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2002/12/news/ofoto-victory-brewing-amorosos-2003-line-ups_3283 |publisher=Velo News |date=December 9, 2002 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> Grain flourished her first career success at the Grand Montreal Cycling Tour ({{langx|fr|Tour du Grand Montréal}}), where she officially earned a first stage triumph.<ref>{{cite news |last=Scrymgeour |first=Kristy |title=Grain's Victory Brewed |url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2003/jun03/montreal03/?id=montreal031 |publisher=Velo News |date=June 2, 2003 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref>
In 2004, Grain emerged as one of the world's top road sprinters, and mounted consistent podium finishes and a limited number of triumphs to earn the U.S. Pro Tour Championships titles and other cycling tournaments. On that same year, she turned her sights to and took up seriously in track cycling.<ref name=gina-grain/><ref>{{cite news |title=3 named to Canada's Olympic track cycling team |url=https://www.thestar.com/sports/olympics/2008/07/03/3_named_to_canadas_olympic_track_cycling_team.html |publisher=Toronto Star |date=July 3, 2008 |accessdate=October 11, 2013}}</ref> When the Victory Brewing folded out after the 2004 season, Grain left herself with no contract and instead, set up her short retirement to concentrate on her full-time job as a registered kinesiologist in exercise therapy and rehab programs at Saanich Commonwealth Place.<ref name=gina-grain/>
At the start of the 2006 season, Grain returned to her professional cycling career when she signed an exclusive contract with Hong Kong's Giant Pro Cycling. She capped a successful season by taking home the silver medal in the women's elite 8 km scratch race at the UCI World Championships in Bordeaux, France, and mounted top-four finishes in both road and points race at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, moving her up to top ten places in the UCI world rankings.<ref>{{cite news |title=Impressive Bos takes a second gold |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2006/SPORT/04/16/cycling.track/ |work=Sports Illustrated |publisher=CNN |date=April 16, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> Reaching the peak of her sporting career, Grain burst again into the road cycling scene by defending her Tour de Gastown title on that same year, the first being done in 2005.<ref>{{cite news |title=Victoria B.C.'s Gina Grain Eager to Defend Her Gastown Title |url=https://pedalmag.com/?p=7190 |publisher=Canadian Cycling Magazine |date=May 2, 2006 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref>
In 2007, Grain granted license by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) for the Canadian women's pro cycling team, racing under the Expresscopy.com banner.<ref>{{cite news |last=Christie |first=James |title=Canada granted licence for women's pro cycling team |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/canada-granted-licence-for-womens-pro-cycling-team/article1111486/ |work=The Globe and Mail |date=December 6, 2006 |accessdate=October 11, 2013}}</ref> She rounded out another successful season by capturing her first ever and only women's elite road race title at the Canadian Championships in Saint-Georges, Quebec.<ref>{{cite news |title=Grain, Meier, Roy collect titles at Canadian road nats |url=http://velonews.competitor.com/2007/07/news/road/grain-meier-roy-collect-titles-at-canadian-road-nats_12689 |publisher=Velo News |date=July 10, 2007 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> By the end of 2007 season, Grain joined her teammates Erinne Willock, Alex Wrubleski, and 2004 U.S. Olympian Christine Thorburn as part of the official roster for the Webcor Builders Cycling Team.<ref>{{cite news |last=Westermeyer |first=Susan |title=Webcor announce roster |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/webcor-announce-roster |work=Cycling News |date=January 8, 2008 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> In July 2008, Grain thrilled again to a sprint finish by claiming her third title at the Tour de Gastown in Vancouver, British Columbia.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cyclists get powered up for Beijing |url=https://nationalpost.com/sports/beijing-games/story.html?id=96555435-263a-477f-ab3b-82b1d5a2f619&category=CB |work=Canwest News Service |publisher=National Post |year=2008 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}{{dead link|date=October 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
Grain qualified for her first Canadian squad, as a 34-year-old, in the women's points race at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing by receiving an invitational berth from the Canadian Cycling Association, based on her top-ten performance in the UCI Track World Rankings.<ref>{{cite news |title=Three athletes named to Canada's Olympic track cycling team |url=https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=242407 |publisher=The Sports Network |date=June 3, 2008 |accessdate=October 10, 2013}}</ref> Grain escaped from an early crash (which she fondly called it a "high-speed chess match") that eliminated three other riders off the track to take the ninth spot successfully in a grueling 25-km race, earning a total score of six points in three of the ten sprints.<ref>{{cite web |title=Women's Points Race |url=http://www.2008.nbcolympics.com/cycling/resultsandschedules/rsc=CTW004100/standings.html |work=Beijing 2008 |publisher=NBC Olympics |accessdate=December 21, 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120819213104/http://www.2008.nbcolympics.com/cycling/resultsandschedules/rsc%3DCTW004100/standings.html |archivedate=August 19, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Bell |first=Terry |title=Grain ninth in cycling points race |url=http://www2.canada.com/topics/sports/beijing2008/story.html?id=b6384ef4-2f68-4fb0-a054-37be44ec597f |work=Canwest News Service |publisher=Canada.com |date=August 18, 2008 |accessdate=October 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019215956/http://www2.canada.com/topics/sports/beijing2008/story.html?id=b6384ef4-2f68-4fb0-a054-37be44ec597f |archive-date=October 19, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Perkins |first=Dave |title=Canadian lucky to avoid pileup |url=https://www.thestar.com/sports/olympics/2008/08/19/canadian_lucky_to_avoid_pileup.html |publisher=Toronto Star |date=August 19, 2008 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref> Shortly after the Olympics, Grain was stunned in a major upset from her inexperienced rival Tara Whitten by taking home the silver in the women's points race at the Canadian Track Cycling Championships in Burnaby, British Columbia.<ref>{{cite news |title=Whitten upsets Olympian Gina Grain for cycling gold |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/whitten-upsets-olympian-gina-grain-for-cycling-gold/article1060545/ |work=The Globe and Mail |date=August 30, 2008 |accessdate=October 11, 2013}}</ref>
Upon returning to Webcor Builders Cycling Team for another season in 2009, Grain started her stint by edging out New Zealand rider and 2008 Olympian Catherine Cheatley on a blazing sprint road race to score a second stage triumph at the Tour of the Gila in southwestern United States.<ref>{{cite news |last=Brown |first=Gregor |title=Webcor women's team ramps up for 2009 |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/webcor-womens-team-ramps-up-for-2009 |work=Cycling News |date=January 27, 2009 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Haedo and Grain win stage 2 at Gila; no changes in GC |url=http://www.podiuminsight.com/2009/04/30/haedo-and-grain-win-stage-2-at-gila-no-changes-in-gc/ |publisher=Podium Insight |date=April 30, 2009 |accessdate=October 19, 2013}}</ref>
==Career highlights== {{Div col}} ;2002 : 2nd Stage 2, Tour de Toona, United States : 3rd Stage 5, Tour de Toona, United States ;2003 : 1st Stage 1, Tour du Grand Montréal, Montréal, Québec (CAN) : 2nd Manhattan Beach Grand Prix, United States : 2nd Stage 2, Tour de Toona, United States ;2004 : 1st CSC Invitational, United States : 2nd Liberty Classic, Philadelphia (USA) : 3rd Stage 4, Pomona Valley Stage Race, Pomona Valley, California (USA) : 3rd Stage 4, Redlands Bicycle Classic, United States ;2005 : {{bronze03}} Pan American Championships (Scratch), Mar del Plata (ARG) : 3rd Stage 1, McLane Pacific Classic, United States : 3rd Stage 2, Tour de Toona, Johnstown, Pennsylvania (USA) : 3rd Stage 5, Tour de Toona, Martinsburg, Pennsylvania (USA) ;2006 : 1st Tour de Gastown, Canada : {{silver02}} UCI World Championships (Scratch), Bordeaux (FRA) : 3rd CSC Invitational, United States : 3rd Criterium, Bank of America Invitational, United States : 3rd Stage 2, Joe Martin Stage Race, United States : 3rd Stage 2, Tour de Toona, Johnstown, Pennsylvania (USA) : 4th Commonwealth Games (Road), Melbourne (AUS) : 4th Commonwealth Games (Scratch), Melbourne (AUS) : 13th UCI World Championships (Points race), Bordeaux (FRA) ;2007 : 1st 20px Canadian Championships (Road), Saint-Georges, Quebec (CAN) : 2nd Criterium, Bank of America Invitational, United States : 2nd Stage 7, Tour de Toona, United States : {{bronze03}} Pan American Championships (Road), Valencia (VEN) : 3rd Liberty Classic, Philadelphia (USA) : 3rd Stage 3, Tour of the Gila, United States : 9th UCI World Championships (Points race), Palma de Mallorca (ESP) ;2008 : 1st Tour de Gastown, Vancouver, British Columbia (CAN) : 2nd Canadian Track Cycling Championships, Burnaby, British Columbia (CAN) : 2nd Stage 2, Cascade Cycling Classic, United States : 2nd Stage 4, Cascade Cycling Classic, United States : 3rd Stage 6, Cascade Cycling Classic, United States : 9th Olympic Games (Points race), Beijing (CHN) : 13th UCI World Championships (Points race), Manchester (GBR) ;2009 : 1st Stage 2, Tour of the Gila, United States : 2nd Canadian Championships (Road), Saint-Georges, Quebec (CAN) : 2nd San Jose Cycling Classic, San Jose, California (USA) : 2nd Stage 4, Tour of the Gila, Silver City, New Mexico (USA) : 3rd Wellington Women's Race, Wellington (NZL) : 3rd Stage 2, Nature Valley Grand Prix, Saint Paul, Minnesota (USA) : 3rd Stage 3, Joe Martin Stage Race, United States {{div col end}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{UCI}} * {{Cycling Archives}} * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923200137/http://www.canadian-cycling.com/cca/nat_team/members/track/grain_bio.shtml |title=Gina Grain at Canadian Cycling Team website |date=mdy}} * {{Team Canada}} * {{Olympics.com profile|gina-grain}} * {{Olympedia}} * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022140822/http://www.2008.nbcolympics.com/athletes/athlete=57333/bio/index.html |title=Gina Grain at NBC 2008 Olympics website |date=mdy}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grain, Gina}} Category:1974 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian female cyclists Category:Canadian track cyclists Category:Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Cyclists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Category:Olympic cyclists for Canada Category:People from Lachine, Quebec Category:Cyclists from Montreal Category:Sportswomen from Quebec Category:Commonwealth Games cyclists for Canada Category:21st-century Canadian sportswomen