At the recent cross country World Cup in Nové Město, Isabella Holmgren had her one shot to qualify for the Olympics. Her brother Gunnar also had to do well if he wanted to get the single spot Canada has for the men’s XC race in Paris. Isabella won the under-23 women’s XCO event, finishing 2:05 ahead of the second-place rider. Almost 24 hours later, Gunnar finished eighth in his race, one of the best results for an elite Canadian male in the past five years. Those performances make the siblings the most likely riders to represent their country in the races at Élancourt Hill this summer.

In this episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast, hear from the two riders from Orillia, Ont. Learn how everything came together for the sister and brother on one weekend in May. Also find out why their places on the start lines at the Olympics aren’t assured just yet, and what they plan to do until the end of July and beyond.