Passing on a passion for cycling, from elite athletes to the next generation

Originally from southern France, Christel Ferrier is the road and track program coordinator at the Centre National de Cyclisme de Bromont, where she also coaches athletes. A former high-performance athlete who competed in the Beijing Olympics, she has extensive experience in several disciplines, including cyclo-cross, road cycling, and mountain biking. Today, she puts her expertise and passion to work in the development of young people and the CNCB cycling community. In this interview, she looks back on her career, shares her vision of training, and explains what makes the National Center unique in her eyes.

Her career and passion for cycling

1) Can you introduce yourself in a few words?

My name is Christel, and I am the road and track program coordinator at the CNCB. I am also a coach in various disciplines, including road cycling, mountain biking, track cycling, cyclo-cross, and enduro, so quite a few disciplines. I am from the south of France, and I have been working at the National Center for nine years. I have dual French-Canadian citizenship. My name is Christel, and I am the road and track program coordinator at the CNCB. I am also a coach in various disciplines: road cycling, mountain biking, track cycling, cyclo-cross, and enduro. I come from the south of France, and I have been working at the National Center for nine years now. I have dual French and Canadian citizenship.

2) What's your story with cycling? How did you get into it?

I started quite late, when I was 16 or 17. My father was in a cycling club in my village, I wanted to try it and I liked it. I immediately turned to competition, progressed more and more, and eventually made it to the French national team and started competing in national and international races.

3) What inspires you in your role as a coach?

Ever since I was young, I've always wanted to pass on my passion for sports in general, but more specifically for cycling. I have extensive experience in various high-level disciplines, including cyclo-cross, road cycling, and mountain biking. So it's really about teaching younger people to love cycling, but also helping athletes perform. That's what's so rewarding, that you can reach different people of all levels.

Training and experience at the CNCB

4) What do you find unique about the CNCB?

What's really unique, what I loved when I came to the National Center, is having all the disciplines in one place. We have the BMX track, the mountain bike trails where you can learn techniques from beginner to more advanced levels, and then go to the mountains to do enduro or cross-country. Then there's the track, the velodrome where you can push yourself in that discipline, and cyclo-cross where there are quite a few circuits in the surrounding area, and of course road cycling with the Shefford mountain.

5) What does a typical training session in your specialty look like?

It's a lot of interval training, intensity at MAP (Maximum Aerobic Power), but also endurance, of course. Whether it's for cyclocross or cross-country mountain biking, we work a lot on technique. So during the week, we have to combine the three types of training, and we put in quite a few hours.

6) What has cycling taught you about yourself?

Cycling has taught me to be persistent, to enjoy hard work, to work hard toward a specific goal, and to set goals for myself. It has taught me to dream and try to achieve those dreams, to push myself to the limit. These are qualities that we can also use later in life, at work, and in our future lives, which is really great.

Performance, challenges, and passing on knowledge

7) What mistake did you make that taught you a lot?

As a high-level athlete, you experience a lot of failures; it happens. In sports, you want to win, but sometimes it doesn't work out, so you always question yourself. What I've learned is how to deal with failure, because it's not easy emotionally, and then to bounce back and work hard to achieve my goal. For example, I didn't win the French cyclo-cross championship twice, which was difficult to deal with, but bouncing back allowed me to win the Canadian cyclo-cross championship.

8) What is your best cycling memory ever?

My best memory would be competing in the Olympic Games in Beijing. It's definitely always a dream as an athlete to be able to experience that. And once you're there, it's really amazing to be with all the athletes from different disciplines.

9) What do you want to convey beyond cycling?

What I want to convey is a passion for cycling. I want them to enjoy cycling, see their progress, and want to continue later on. I think playing sports promotes a healthy lifestyle, and that includes nutrition. It's a lifestyle that I want to pass on to them. It's easier to instill these habits in younger children so that they stick with them later in life, but also with some adults who want to change their lifestyle. It's interesting to be able to help them with that.

10) What do you enjoy most about cross-country biking?

What I like about mountain biking is the effort involved, and at the same time, you have to be very technical. It takes about an hour to an hour and a half of effort. Then, what I like about cyclocross is that the effort is shorter, but you have a bike that's not really suited to what's required of you. So when it's muddy or snowy, it's very technical, and you have to adjust a small 33 mm section to be able to hold your line in the turns. I really like that slippery aspect.

11) What do you think is the most demanding part of cross-country?

The most demanding part is really being at a high intensity level. On the climbs, we push ourselves to the limit, all the way to the end. Then, we have to be very technical with the fatigue we'll have from the climb. So, it's about trying to combine the two: being good on the climbs, but also being good on the descents while tired.

12) What is the CNCB Club?

It's brand new. We're going to take a look at the CNCB Club, which was the former Endurance Program last year. On Mondays, it will be road cycling, and on Wednesdays, mountain biking. We want to bring young people together in a good group, a good recreational community, but also for those who want to push themselves a little more in terms of competition. So that's it, there will be different skill level groups and it's really about teaching them to love all cycling disciplines. So, when we talk about road cycling, it will be gravel road cycling, and then, in mountain biking, we'll touch a little on cross-country.

Through her career and daily commitment, Christel Ferrier embodies a vision of cycling where performance, enjoyment, and sharing go hand in hand. Whether working with young people who are new to the sport or athletes who want to push their limits, she actively contributes to the development of the CNCB cycling community. Through her accessible approach and high-level experience, she reminds us that cycling is much more than a sport; it is a continuous learning process, a way of life, and a passion to be shared.

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