Name: Shanaze Reade
D.O.B.: 23/09/1988
Hometown: Crewe, Cheshire
Disciplines: BMX and Track Sprint
Major Results:
2008
Gold, Elite Women’s BMX
World BMX Championships, Taiyuan
Gold, Team Sprint (with Victoria Pendleton)
World Track Championships, Manchester
2007
Gold, Elite Women’s BMX
World BMX Championships, Canada
Gold, Team Sprint (with Victoria Pendleton)
World Track Championships, Majorca
2006
Gold, Junior Women’s BMX
World BMX Championships, Brazil
About Shanaze:
Shanaze Reade has made a name for herself on both the BMX track and the velodrome boards, claiming World titles in both disciplines.
Shanaze began her career on the BMX track at the age of ten and by the time she was seventeen she was the Britain’s number one female rider, having competed in the Elite Men’s category throughout the National Series to improve her skills. International success followed, with Shanaze being crowned ‘World Champion’ in every year she has competed at senior level. In the 2008 World BMX Championships, Shanaze stormed away from the competition in the finals and took the World title by several lengths.
Shanaze took up track cycling to keep herself fit for BMX racing, but her power and strength worked well on the velodrome boards and she has found a role as lead-out rider in the Women’s Team Sprint with Victoria Pendleton, with whom she won world titles in 2007 and 2008.
The Beijing Olympics 2008 saw Shanaze compete in the inaugural BMX competition. She started as favourite for the women’s title, but crashed out on the last bend of the final as she tried to overtake eventual winner Anne-Caroline Chausson. However, her win at all costs approach and aggressive style won her many admirers.
www.shanazereade.com
GB Team images on Flickr