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Cycling’s most successful female Olympian in history, Dame Laura Kenny, has announced her retirement from the sport after winning five gold medals in three different Games.
After deciding to give it one last go at qualifying for the Olympics in Paris in 2024, Kenny will now take a step back and observe from a distance.
“I appreciate everything you’ve given me, cycling, especially our expanding family and a husband!” The Olympic champion Kenny, who is married to Jason Kenny, shared a post on Instagram.
Dame Laura Kenny thoughts on her cycling journey.
For me, it means the world to hear that I’ve encouraged girls and women to start riding bikes and being active. My gratitude goes out to British Cycling, Team GB, and all of my partners who have helped me along the way.
“I would like to express my gratitude to all of my teammates throughout the years, as well as to my family, who have provided the best support system I could have asked for.” Moving on is now necessary, but don’t stop reading for the next installment.
Following her birth six weeks early due to a collapsed lung, Kenny competed as Laura Trott before marrying fellow Olympic champion Sir Jason Kenny. Her parents encouraged her to take up cycling as a means of increasing lung capacity, per the doctor’s advice.
Her relationship with sprint king Jason increased public interest in Britain’s new golden pair, and she became one of the faces of the London Olympics after winning gold medals in the omnium and team pursuit.
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Achievements of Dame Laura Kenny
In addition to winning a silver in the team pursuit and defending her titles in Rio, Kenny also added a Commonwealth gold in the scratch race in Birmingham in 2022. In Tokyo, she also won her fifth and final gold in the Madison.
However, she acknowledged that prior to the Commonwealths, she had experienced an ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage, and that she was having mental health issues and felt “lost.”
The 31-year-old revealed in an interview with BBC Breakfast on Monday morning: “I always knew deep down I would know when the right time was.” I’ve had an incredible time, but it’s time for me to hang up my bike.
Kenny and her spouse, who retired in 2022 to pursue a career in coaching, welcomed a second boy into their family last year, and she mentioned that she was becoming increasingly drawn to spending time at home.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a while now; leaving your family and children behind is a big decision, with a lot of sacrifices involved,” the woman remarked.
“I was finding it more and more difficult to do that.” The fact that I eventually didn’t want to go was the reason I received more questions about what events and training camps I was attending.
“I was experiencing those emotions right away, and I knew.” I felt a lot of relief after telling Jase that I wasn’t sure I wanted to ride a bike anymore.