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| Human Interest | |
|---|---|
General Interest | |
| Other information | NATIONAL FIRST At the 2013 World Championships in Minsk, Belarus, she became the first British cyclist to win four medals at the same Track World Championships. (insidethegames.biz, 07 Feb 2014) A CARING SISTER Three of the four James sisters are cyclists but her fourth sister, Bethan, was born with fluid on the brain and needs 24-hour care. "When she's poorly, it's hard. It makes you appreciate everything you have so much more. In the past, I'd help feed her and bathe her and, if my parents wanted to go out, I'd be there to look after her. It's hard to do it on your own. My parents have been absolutely amazing, being able to do that." (theguardian.com. 27 Feb 2013) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Family | Partner George North |
| Residence | Manchester, ENG |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Abergavenny Road Club: Great Britain |
General Interest | |
| Hobbies | Horse riding, baking. (britishcycling.org.uk, 17 Aug 2010; Twitter profile, 15 Jun 2016) |
| Injuries | She underwent shoulder surgery in October 2014 during her recovery from a knee injury. She returned at the Revolution Series in Derby in August 2015 after not competing for 18 months. (bbc.co.uk, 11 Feb 2015; walesonline.co.uk, 08 Mar 2016; theguardian.com, 23 Sep 2015; bbc.co.uk, 17 Aug 2015) She was forced to withdraw from the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with a knee injury. She was forced to have two weeks out of training due to a positive smear test in May 2014 that required minor surgery to remove abnormal cells. When she returned to training she aggravated an old injury. The knee injury consisted of three interconnected problems around the tibia. (bbc.co.uk, 27 Jun 2014; theguardian.com, 23 Sep 2015) She suffered from appendicitis in late 2012. (bbc.co.uk, 03 Dec 2015) She suffered an injury at the European Track Championships in 2009 after falling off her bike in the final race. (sportsister.com, 8 Aug 2009) She had tonsillitis and glandular fever in 2008, causing her to miss the European junior championships that year. (britishcycling.org.uk, 17 Aug 2010) |
| Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs | She listens to dance music on her personal music player during warm-up. (britishcycling.org.uk, 17 Aug 2010) |
| Memorable sporting achievement | Winning gold in the keirin and sprint at the 2013 World Championships in Minsk. Belarus and winning bronze at the 2016 World Championships in London, England after two years out of the sport. (walesonline.co.uk, 08 Mar 2016) |
| Other sports | She competed in show jumping. (britishcycling.org.uk, 17 Aug 2010) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | She joined an afternoon cycling club at her school, and was accepted onto the British Cycling Olympic Development Programme in 2007 at age 15. She knew then that she wanted to be a sprinter. |
General Interest | |
| Most influential person in career | Her family. (britishcycling.org.uk, 17 Aug 2010) |
| Ambitions | To compete at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (walesonline.co.uk, 08 Mar 2016) |
| Awards and honours | She was named 2013 Sunday Times and Sky Sports Young Sportswoman of the Year. (skysports.com, 18 Dec 2013) She won the 2009 Daily Telegraph-Aviva Sport Matters Female Pupil of the Year award. (abergavennychronicle.co.uk, 19 Oct 2009) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | Jan van Eijden [personal]; Andy Harrison [national]; Iain Dyer [national] |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She began cycling at age 11. |
International Debut | |
| Year | 2007 |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete |
General Interest | |
| Famous relatives | Her older sister, Rachel James, is a tandem pilot on the GB Paracycling squad. One of her younger sisters, Ffion James, is a mountain biker on the British Cycling Olympic Development Programme, while another younger sister, Megan James, was crowned National Under-14 girls cyclo-cross champion in January 2014. Her partner is Welsh rugby union player, George North. (Instagram profile, 19 Jun 2014; Twitter profile, 8 Jun 2014; walesonline.co.uk, 18 Mar 2014; abergavennyrc.org.uk, 11 Jan 2014; walesonline.co.uk, 08 Mar 2016) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Languages | English |
General Interest | |
| Nicknames | Becky (insidethegames.biz, 07 Feb 2014) |