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TV presenter and personality Gail Porter, four-time Olympic gold medal winner Laura Kenny CBE and Olympic gold medallist Nicole Cooke MBE are among 100 women named in Cycling UK’s Women in Cycling awards.
The women have all been recognised in celebration of the work they have done to inspire other women to get on their bikes as the national cycling charity officially launches its Women’s Festival of Cycling.
Other well-known names who have made the list include Paralympian Hannah Dines, who opened the conversation about female saddle pain after having to undergo labial surgery, Isabeau Courdurier, the youngest women to have won the Enduro World Series, Lizzie Deignan, Olympic medallist and 2015 World Road Race Champion, and cycle touring author Bettina Selby.
The list also includes less well-known names who have been working at grassroots level to encourage more women to ride: people like Nour Jarrouj, who was one of the first women to join a cycling initiative in Damascus, Syria, aimed at getting more women out on bikes. After moving to the UK, she went on to join the Bike Project as a project manager, providing bikes, equipment and training to refugee and asylum-seeking women.
Although the number of women cycling has increased during lockdown, men are still cycling nearly twice as much as women. The Women’s Festival of Cycling aims to address that imbalance by inspiring more women to get in the saddle.
Helen Cook, Cycling UK’s head of engagement, said: “Every woman on our list is an incredible ambassador for women’s cycling, and with the surge in interest in cycling over the past few months we want to make sure women continue to get on their bikes and more women join them.
“During the festival we are asking women who cycle to share pictures of their rides with us using the hashtag #BeYouByBike to show the fun, freedom and adventure we can all have on a bike.”
The Women’s Festival of Cycling takes place from 11th to 31st July and includes fun interactive talks aimed at women.
To find out more about the festival and to see a full list of nominees, click here.
Read the July edition of BikeBiz below:
