Bradley Wiggins announces retirement from cycling
Sir Bradley Wiggins has announced his retirement from cycling.
Wiggins, 36, is Great Britain’s most decorated Olympian with eight medals in total, including five golds – and in 2012 he become the first Briton to win the Tour de France.
He said: “I have been lucky enough to live a dream and fulfil my childhood aspiration of making a living and a career out of the sport I fell in love with at the age of 12.
“What will stick with me forever is the support and love from the public through thick and thin, all as a result of riding a pushbike for a living.
“2012 blew my mind and was a gas. Cycling has given me everything and I couldn’t have done it without the support of my wonderful wife Cath and our amazing kids.
“2016 is the end of the road for this chapter, onwards and upwards, “feet on the ground, head in the clouds” – kids from Kilburn don’t win Olympic Golds and Tour de Frances! They do now.”
As well as his Olympic titles, won across five Games in Sydney, Athens, Beijing, London and Rio, and his Tour de France triumph, Wiggins won seven world titles.
Wiggins, nicknamed ‘Wiggo’, is the only cyclist to have won world and Olympic gold medals on both track and road.
His other achievements include the world track hour record, set in June 2015, and wearing the leader’s jersey in each of the three Grand Tours. He also jointly holds the world record in the team pursuit.
Wiggins’ most prolific year was 2012 when he won the Tour de France, Olympic road time trial gold in his home town of London, the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year award and the Velo d’Or – as well as further triumphs in the Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie and the Criterium du Dauphine.
