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| Human Interest | |
|---|---|
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Sky Procycling: London, ENG |
General Interest | |
| Hobbies | He enjoys kite surfing, yoga, kayaking. (England CWG Handbook Guide, 2010) |
| Memorable sporting achievement | Winning the 2002 Grand Prix Ouest-France [Plouay] one-day race and helping Mark Cavendish win the 2011 Road World Championships for Great Britain in Denmark. (Cervélo Media Kit, 31 Aug 2010; cyclingtips.com.au, 17 Feb 2012) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | His father was a decent amateur rider, so cycling was always part of life for him and his brother. |
General Interest | |
| Ambitions | Once his cycling career is over, to go into talent-spotting young cyclists and or a career in osteopathy. (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | He began cycling at age six. |
General Interest | |
| Injuries | He suffered locking of his right leg during the 2011 Tour of Flanders. (teamsky.com, 12 Apr 2011) |
| Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs | "Now is a much better time to be young and talented in cycling. I wish I was a new professional now." (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011) |
| Famous relatives | His half-brother Joshua Hunt has ridden for the French-based UVCA Troyes cycling team. (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011) |
| Hero / Idol | Spain's five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain. (cyclingtips.com.au, 17 Feb 2012) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete |
| Languages | English |
General Interest | |
| Nicknames | Jez (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011) |
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "The classics are the hardest races in the world but weirdly the most enjoyable. When you ride them you almost enter a dream state and by the time you cross the finish line everything hurts. As soon as that pain dies away though, you can't wait to do them all again." (teamsky.com, 11 Jan 2011) |
| Other information | TEAM MENTOR As the senior member of Sky's racing squad he is seen as its unofficial mentor. "I guess when I was younger it would have been good to have someone point me in the right direction. To know what to expect, where to be at the front and when to move and things like that. I guess you learn it over a few years. You aren't just following, you're learning." (teamsky.com, 03 Apr 2012) TV FINISH After playing a minder's role for Mark Cavendish during the majority of the 2011 Road World Championships in Copenhagen, he decided to take it a little easier when the race reached its last climb. "I thought, 'Do I really need to suffer on this last climb to finish in the peloton?'. David [Millar] stopped so I dropped back with him to finish the race nice and easy. We rode past this nice big-screen TV, looked at each other and said 'We got to watch the finish'. So there we were, two guys in GB skinsuits, jumped the fence to watch the finish on TV with the crowd. Then we just hopped out and rolled to the finish line about eight minutes down." (cyclingtips.com.au, 17 Feb 2012) TOUR DEBUT In 2010, aged 36 and riding for Cervelo Test Team, he finally made his Tour de France debut more than a decade after first having the chance. In his second year with the Spanish team Banesto in 1997 he was asked to ride the Tour but declined the invitation to concentrate on the shorter races - a decision he came to regret. "I said, 'No, I'll wait for next year'. I was flying at the time so I didn't think I needed to do the Tour that year, I thought I'd do it the next year but I didn't realise the chance wouldn't come along again for another 13 years. If I'd known that I'd probably have said yes. If anyone offers you the chance to start the Tour de France, take it." (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011) EARLY DAYS Former Great Britain cyclist Colin Lewis, who rode in both the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games and the 1967 Tour de France , nurtured him as a teenager in Devon after he turned up at Lewis' Cycling Club wanting to race. "If you were good you'd end up staying with him," Hunt said. "If you couldn't, you'd never see him again and you'd be riding home alone." He eventually made his way to France to race as an amateur and then began his professional career in 1996 working for his hero and five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain at Banesto, fetching and carrying bottles and clothes to and from the team car. (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011; cyclingtips.com.au, 17 Feb 2012) FROM CANADA TO GREAT BRITAIN He was born in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan but moved to England when he was two. He was raised in Bury near Manchester and then later Devon. "I was a Canadian citizen, but I'm not anymore. I think I'm the only professional cyclist to come out of Saskatchewan." (cyclesportmag.com, 01 Jan 2011; cyclingtips.com.au, 17 Feb 2012) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Family | Partner Narelle |