Katie Curtis

July 19-23; Athens Olympic Velodrome

A rookie at the European championships will be Welsh rider Katie Curtis from Cardiff.

"I'm really excited and its going to be a new experience for me" she said when we spoke at Manchester. Katie was training with Lizzy Armitstead and Nikki Harris who have both done the European championships.

Having them around her means that she can get answers to any questions she has on the Championships. In Athens, the events she'll be down to ride are the Points and Scratch race and she is hoping to do well enough to go on and ride the Junior Worlds. Her training for the Championships started after the Women's Road Race championships won by her fellow Cardiff Ajax rider, Nicole Cooke.

It was says Katie, a hard race but then being a junior that isn't surprising and she admits to having enjoyed riding the road with the senior riders. She is though looking forward to racing on the track where she enjoys the speed as they race around the boards and with the Europeans being on the Olympic board track, Katie is sure to enjoy that experience too and we wish her lots of luck with her races.