Monica Eden came to cycling as a teenager, first picking up a mountain bike when she was 13. After toying with a career in journalism she changed tack and is now a regional performance pathway coach with British Cycling.
“As soon as I got stuck in and started coaching I loved it and I got a real buzz. I was really lucky to have such a supportive club who helped me develop and funded my first coaching qualification. Within six months I had decided that I wanted my career to be in coaching.”
One of Monica’s main roles as a performance pathway coach is helping young girls who are just starting out in the sport to progress up the ladder.
“There is a really strong pathway for young girls coming into the sport now and you can see the strength of the pathway in Great Britain’s team pursuit squad. Those girls have been dominant since
the event was introduced and the competition for places is so high.”
#WeRide Week
Following a fantastic Women’s Tour, British Cycling is delighted to launch #WeRide week, an initiative highlighting the vast range of opportunities available to women who wish to get involved in the sport.
British Cycling’s #WeRide strategy was launched in March 2013 with the target of getting one million more women cycling regularly by 2020. A two year update published earlier this month showed that the strategy is on track with 254,000 more women now cycling, but with work still to be done to reach the one million target.
There are a number of inspirational women already out there working and taking part in the sport and we’ll be highlighting some of those case studies throughout the week.
- Caroline Foreman – Getting more women cycling more often
- Yvonne Mills – Getting more women running the sport
- Rachel Aldred – Campaigning and commuting for safer roads
- Nicky Hawker – Creating opportunities to ride and race
- Marian Lauder/Alex Russell - More women getting involved in governing the sport
- Aileen Brown – Increasing female membership
- Monica Eden – Creating a pathway that keeps women engaged
British Cycling also has a number of activities taking place during #WeRide week for any women looking to take their first steps into the sport, whether someone wants to race, coach, volunteer or get involved in race organisation - check them out here.
