Shanaze Reade

Shanaze Reade
Personal information
Full name Shanaze Danielle Reade
Born (1988-09-23) 23 September 1988
Crewe, Cheshire, United Kingdom
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Weight 79 kg (174 lb)[1]
Team information
Current team Madison Genesis
Discipline Bicycle Motocross (BMX)
Track
Role Racer
Rider type BMX: Off Road
Track: Sprinter
Amateur team(s)
2001–2003 Bulldog Bikes UK
2004–2005 Team Persil BMX
2005–2006 SIS/Adidas
2006 Koxx Racing
Professional team(s)
2007–2008 Redline Bicycles
2008–2013 Team Sky+ HD
2015 – Madison Genesis
Medal record
Representing  Great Britain
Track cycling
World Championships
2007 Palma de Mallorca Team sprint
2008 Manchester Team sprint
2009 Pruszków Team sprint
BMX
World Championships
2007 Victoria Elite Women
2008 Taiyuan Elite Women
2010 Adelaide Elite Women
2011 Copenhagen Elite Women Time Trial
2012 Birmingham Elite Women Time Trial
2006 São Paulo Junior Women
Infobox last updated on
26 December 2015

Shanaze Danielle Reade (born 23 September 1988 in Crewe, Cheshire, United Kingdom)[2] is a professional British Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer and track cyclist whose prime competitive years began in 2002. She has won the UCI BMX World Championships three times.[3] Reade is the daughter of a Jamaican father and an Irish mother.[4]

Early years

Reade began racing in 1998 at the age of 10, at Tipkinder Park in Crewe. A local track operator named Bob Field, whose son also raced at the time, became her mentor.[5] She was influenced by BMX professional racer, Jamie Staff, who was also from Crewe and raced at Reade's home track before Reade's career[6] and during its early stages. She bought her first BMX bike for £1.[7] She was previously a Track & Field enthusiast but apparently got bored with 100-metre sprint running and the Shot Put after five years in those sports before discovering BMX.[8][9]

BMX career to 2007

In 2005 she raced the National series with the men all year, despite being only 17 years old.[10][11] She commented on racing against men in a Descent World interview:

I am usually always top 3 when racing the guys. I have been racing them now for 2 years and I was almost the National Champion last year though had to settle for the No 2 spot. The boys in BMX are all cool, some spit their dummies out but I just let them get on with it! It's really quite fun to watch when I kick their booties..[12]

Reade fractured her knee two weeks before the UCI World Championships in July 2005 at a national event in England. She raced the World Championships with her knee wrapped up and on pain killers but crashed in the quarter finals.[13]

Known for her power, she developed her strength racing against boys and older amateurs, including men up to the present time. She won her first professional race in the Girls Pro at the American Bicycle Association (ABA) Winternationals in Phoenix, Arizona on 1 April 2006. She also won the following day.[14] In 2006 she became British National No.1 in 19 & Over Elite Men after racing the National series with men all year, despite being only 17 at the time, 1.72 metres tall and 76 kg.

In June 2006, Reade broke a metatarsal bone in practice. Her first race back was the 2006 European Championships where she competed only in the last two race events before the final Event. The cast came off four days before the European Championships Final Event.[15][15]

Pain, though, is nothing new, even at Reade's age. Injuries are common in this aggressive form of cycling. This is not the first time she has broken her foot and other crashes have broken an elbow and a bone at the base of her spine.[16]

She won the World Championships in Brazil in August 2006 despite an earlier injury to her foot.

Her BMX victories at junior level include three World, eight European and five British BMX championships. Reade is also a champion track racer, riding on Velodromes. In July 2007 she became the Women's Senior UCI BMX World Champion and at the 2007 UCI Track World Championships,[17] she won the gold in the women's team sprint with Victoria Pendleton. It was only her second track race ever.[18] Not only was she the first ever to win a track championship in her rookie year, she completed the feat after only six weeks of training.[19] She had originally taken up the sport to keep her fit for BMX competition.

Track racing

Reade started track racing on 24 February 2007, her first ever competition on the velodrome was in the Manchester round of the 2006–2007 UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics. She took second place with Anna Blyth in the Team Sprint in a time of 34.294 seconds. The Gold Medal winning Dutch team of Yvonne Hijgenaar and Willy Kanis' time was 33.966 seconds. Like Reade, Kanis is also a champion BMX racer. Reade and Blyth's qualifying time was the fastest of the event at 33.802 seconds. In the final round, the Dutch team made a false start, however, Reade didn't notice the call back to the start and completed a lap at full sprint. In a post race interview, Reade said:

"...The first run in the final (the false start) definitely took a lot out of me because I got halfway down the back straight the second time and my legs were burning bad. I could never have dreamed I'd come away with a Silver medal in my first World Cup though."[20]
Reade and Victoria Pendleton in 2008

A month later, on 29 March, Reade went on to take first place in Team Sprint at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Palma de Mallorca along with Victoria Pendleton.[21] It was also the first ever Women's Team Sprint Gold Medal title in that event. Their winning time was 33.631 seconds.[22] Reade was a last minute replacement for Anna Blyth,[23] Reade's partner at her first track racing event a month prior.

This success in Velodrome racing follows the example of the former professional BMX racer, Jamie Staff, who had a successful career both in Velodrome track racing and BMX racing. At the 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Manchester, she again won the gold in the women's team sprint with Pendleton. Reade was named one of the "Magnificent 7" by the Daily Mail in 2005,[6] and on 20 November 2007 Reade was named The Sunday Times Young Sportswoman of the Year.[24]

Olympic Games

Reade is still active in track racing but concentrated on BMX for the event's first inclusion in the Olympic Games in 2008. Having successfully defended her crown at the 2008 world championships,[25] Reade was named the sole woman member of the United Kingdom BMX Olympic team by British Cycling on 9 July 2008.[26] She was the favourite to win the gold medal in the women's BMX event.

She crashed in the first qualifying heat time trial, but the second heat saw Reade set second fastest time. As the best of both times was counted; she advanced to the semi-finals. They were run in three heats, with riders accumulating points dependendent on placings. Despite crashing in the first heat, Reade gained enough points to put her through to the final. The final round saw Reade ride slightly more conservatively conceding the lead to Anne-Caroline Chausson on the first berm. She crashed again on the final berm when she clipped Chausson's rear wheel, conceding the chance of a medal. She did not finish the race.[27][28]

Return to the track

On 16 March 2009, Reade was selected in the British squad for the World Track Cycling Championships in Pruszków, Poland, where she once again competed alongside Victoria Pendleton in the Women's Sprint and Team Sprint events.[29] In 2009 however Reade and Pendleton failed to retain their team crown, winning only a silver after losing out to Kaarle McCulloch and Anna Meares of Australia.[30] Reade was philosophical after this setback telling BBC Sport "I did the best possible ride I could do on the day so I'm really happy."

In April 2015 it was announced that Reade was re-joining the Great Britain track squad after a period based in the United States competing in BMX.[31] Subsequently in August 2015 the Madison Genesis team announced that Reade would ride for them during the 2015–16 track cycling season as part of her preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympics.[32]

Olympics 2012

Reade again represented Great Britain in the women's BMX event for the London 2012 Olympics. Having placed first, second and first in the three heat semi-final she finished a disappointing sixth in the final.[33]

Titles and awards

BMX titles

Amateur

British Cycling

2000
11–12 Girls and 12 Girls Cruiser BCFBMX National Champion. She also came in 4th in 12 cruiser against the boys that year
2001
Senior Women's Champion
13 Girls European Champion
2003
15 Girls European Champion
2004
16 Girls European Champion
16 Girls and 18 & Under Women's Cruiser World Champion
2005
18 & Under Women's Cruiser European Champion
17 Expert European Champion
2006
Junior Elite Women European Champion

Professional

British Cycling

2002
Superclass girl National Champion
2003
Superclass girl National Champion
2006
19 & Over Elite Men British National No.1

Union Cycliste Internationale

2006
Junior Women World Champion
2007
Elite Women World Champion
Elite Women European Champion
Elite Women Supercross World Cup Champion – This was the "Good Luck, Beijing" race held on 22 August 2007 on the Olympic track in Beijing, China exactly 362 days before BMX Olympic competition started in Beijing.[34]
2008
Elite Women World Champion
Elite Women Supercross World Cup Champion
2010
Elite Women World Champion
2013
1st UCI BMX Supercross World Cup – Round 1
1st UCI BMX Supercross World Cup – Round 2

Track results

References

  1. 1 2 "Athletes: Shanaze Reade". london2012.com. Retrieved 10 August 2012.
  2. ↑ "Olympic Dreams – Shanaze Reade". BBC Sport. 3 October 2007.
  3. ↑ Shanaze Reade crowned BMX world champion for third time
  4. ↑ "The BMX Factor – Shanaze now four years ahead of schedule as she eyes golden double". London: Daily Mail. 6 November 2007.
  5. ↑ Andrew Longmore (23 March 2008). "Shanaze Reade, pedalling to Beijing". London: timesonline.co.uk.
  6. 1 2 Neil Wilson (2 March 2008). "Tough on the track... and off it, Shanaze is golden hope at BMX". Mail on Sunday.
  7. ↑ "BT London 2012 > Our ambassadors > Shanaze Reade". BT Group.
  8. ↑ "Wheel deal: BMX racing makes its Olympic debut". London: The Independent. 5 January 2008. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  9. ↑ Roger Ajogbe (13 February 2002). "Two Wheels Good…Shanaze Reade PREVIEW". Touch.
  10. ↑ "Brightest hopes primed to make a big noise in 2007". London: The Guardian Online, Sport Blog. 30 December 2006. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  11. ↑ "BC BMX National Series Rnd 6 – Event Report". British Cycling. 14 August 2006.
  12. ↑ Si Paton (2005). "Interview: Shanaze Reade". Descent World.
  13. ↑ Gareth A Davies (25 March 2008). "My Sport: Shanaze Reade". London: Telegraph.
  14. ↑ BMX Plus! July 2006 Vol.29 No.7 pg.69 (results)
  15. 1 2 Laura Deeley (28 July 2007). "Wheel trail blazer". London: times.online.co.uk.
  16. ↑ "Reade riding high in hunt for BMX gold". London: dailymail.co.uk. 14 July 2006.
  17. ↑ Baskett, Simon (3 April 2007). "British track team set the gold standard". Reuters. Retrieved 2007-04-03.
  18. ↑ Whittle, Jeremy (30 March 2007). "Women sprinters quick to follow gold standard of Wiggins". London: The Times. Retrieved 2007-04-03.
  19. ↑ "In pictures (click blue box for 9th image)". BBC Sport. 30 May 2008.
  20. ↑ Phil Ingham (24 February 2007). "Manchester UCI Track World Cup 2007, event report". British Cycling.
  21. ↑ "Olympic Countdown: Shanaze Reade". bmxcommunity.com. 6 March 2008.
  22. ↑ Andrew Hood (29 March 2007). "Huff scores bronze in omnium as Wiggins takes pursuit final". Velonews.com.
  23. ↑ Shane Stokes (27 April 2007). "An interview with Shanaze Reade: Dream Debut on Track". cyclingnews.com.
  24. ↑ Maul, Rob (20 November 2007). "MCC Young Sportswoman of the Year". London: Times Online. Retrieved 2007-12-13.
  25. ↑ Jessica Whitehorn (2 June 2008). "Shanaze Reade defends world BMX title". UK Sport.
  26. ↑ "Great Britain names strong Olympic squad". cyclingnews.com. 9 July 2008.
  27. ↑ Gallagher, Brendan (22 August 2008). "Shanaze Reade crashes out of BMX final in bid for golden glory at Beijing Olympics". London: telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  28. ↑ "Reade crashes out of BMX medals". BBC Sport. 22 August 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-22.
  29. ↑ "Cavendish named in GB track team". BBC Sport. 16 March 2009.
  30. ↑ "GB women win world pursuit gold". BBC Sport. 27 March 2009.
  31. ↑ Wynn, Nigel (13 April 2015). "Shanaze Reade returns to Great Britain's track team". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
  32. ↑ Clarke, Stuart (5 August 2015). "Shanaze Reade joins Madison Genesis for 2015/16 track season". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
  33. ↑ "London 2012: Shanaze Reade misses out again as GB fail in BMX finals". guardian.co.uk. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
  34. ↑ "Shanaze Reade – U.K". redlinebicycles.com.
  35. ↑ "British National Track Championships 25th–27th September 2015: Results – Team Female" (PDF). British Cycling. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
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