Name: Victoria Pendleton
D.O.B.: 24/09/1980
Hometown: Stotfold, Near Hitchen
Disciplines: Track Sprint
Major Results:
2009
World Track Championships, Poland
Gold, Sprint
Silver, Team Sprint
Bronze, 500m Time Trial
2008
Olympics, Beijing
Gold, Sprint
World Track Championships, Manchester
Gold, Team Sprint
Gold, Sprint
Silver, Keirin
2007
World Track Championships, Majorca
Gold, Team Sprint
Gold, Sprint
Gold, Keirin
2006
World Track Championships, Bordeaux
Silver, Sprint
Commonwealth Games, Melbourne
Gold, Sprint
Silver, 500m Time Trial
2005
World Track Championships, Los Angeles
Gold, Sprint
About Victoria:
Olympic and World Champion Victoria Pendleton began her cycling career on the grass track at the age of 9 – a discipline in which her father Max was national champion. She was spotted by the GB team at the age of 13, but chose to focus on her studies and gained her degree in Sport and Exercise Science at Northumbria University. But being a full-time student didn’t stop Victoria wanting to compete, and she won four medals in the National Track Championships in 2001, before turning to Track sprinting full time in 2002.
In 2005, Victoria won her first World Championship title, taking Gold in the Sprint. She was second in 2006, but regained the title in 2007 and successfully defended it in 2008 and 2009.
2007 was a great year for Victoria, seeing her win no less than three World Championship medals – she added the Team Sprint and Keirin titles to her Sprint gold. This achievement saw her be crowned as The Times Sportswoman of the Year as well as the Sports Journalists of Great Britain’s Sportswoman of the Year.
However, 2008 was even more successful for Victoria as she brought home Sprint Gold from the Beijing Olympics – an achievement recognised by an MBE in the New Year’s Honours List. Her competitive spirit and love of the sport meant that, despite little rest since the Olympics she was back in action at the 2009 World Championships, successfully winning her fourth sprint title, silver in the Team Sprint and her first ever medal - a bronze - in the 500m Time Trial.
GB Team images on Flickr