Shanaze Reade on Track

Shanaze Reade Back on Track to Defend Titles

Story posted 24 March, 2008

By Larry Hickmott

20070329_Tr_Worlds_WTS_Podium_200 Like Jamie Staff, Shanaze Reade (left of picture) is a multi-talented athlete and has two World titles to her name – one in BMX and the other on the track. That alone makes her pretty special and she intends to improve on that record this year as she competes in the World titles for BMX and the Track as well as the Olympic Games for BMX.

Shanaze has only been on the track for just over a year but last year in Majorca with Victoria Pendleton won the World Team Sprint title for Women. This followed shortly after her international track debut at the Manchester round of the UCI World Track Cup.

Talking to her last week as she prepared for the Championships this week, the rider from Crewe says “these World Championships will be just like racing the Manchester World Cup last year which was one of the best events I have done – even better Majorca because it was my first time and I had the support of the home crowd. It was really exciting and I am looking forward to getting into the swing of things and racing here at Manchester which I know will be a great experience.”

Talking about the events she will be doing at the World Track Championships, Shanaze explained “I will be doing the 500 metre Time Trial and the Team Sprint. Hopefully I’ll go a lot faster in the 500 than I did in Denmark where I was ill and in the Team Sprint, Vicky and I hope to break the World Record again.”

Shanaze was certainly looking fit and healthy in the track centre and admits “if illness can ever fall at the right time, before Denmark was the time and I feel everything that has happened was for a reason like I needed a break or whatever and now I feel good going into this event.”

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Majorca World Championships last year and Shanaze gets GB off to a flying start and a World Title.

Asked which event will be the main focus, Shanaze replied “the Team Sprint I think will be the main focus. Originally, I wanted to do well in the 500 but with the little time I have had, there hasn’t been the time to focus on the 500. Training though has been going well and I would love to medal in the 500 should everything come right on the day.”

Shanaze admits with Victoria being a triple world champion and training for four possible events that they don’t have a lot of time to practice together but on the day British Cycling was track side, they did manage a few standing starts and as Shanaze admits, “made each session on the track together count”.

Shanaze though, unlike the others in the track centre, has an eye on her Olympic event in another cycling discipline as well and during the track training has not lost contact with her BMX training.

“I am still doing BMX work once a week and then after the Track Worlds, there is only six weeks before the BMX Worlds in China (in May) so it’s a very short gap. Trying to juggle track and BMX, you know one is going to suffer and I think track has this year. I haven’t expanded the events I do on the track as much as I would like to have done.”

What Shanaze means is branching out to the other sprint events like the match Sprint and Keirin like Dutch ace Willy Kanis. Shanaze has the muscle and speed to win well in BMX would love to get into the mix of the other sprint events. “I think I have opened a few eyes on how I am riding the track bike and I think I have the main ingredients there to do well in the Sprint and Keirin.”

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Shanaze practices her starts at Manchester last week.

That ambition though will have to go on hold though and for now, it’s the time trial events on the track and then the main focus, the BMX World Championships and Olympics. “The BMX Worlds are a very important race for me because I have to do well there to qualify for the Olympic Games so its going to be a big hit.”

“I have qualified already for the BMX Worlds after doing two events and won them. At the Worlds, I need to get into the semi finals to qualify for the Olympic Games so straight after the Track Worlds, I have three days rest when I’m going to watch some BMX races and then I’ll bounce straight back into my BMX training”.

“Iain has devised a programme for me to go from the track phase into the BMX phase and then Iain and Grant will then try and get me into the best possible shape for the Olympics” We wish Shanaze lots of luck at the World Track Championships and the BMX Worlds that follow.

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