Cycling Champion Soon To Be Dad

Track cycling legend Eddie Dawkins has switched his bike for a bobsled, and will also be a Dad in February.

The 30-year-old former World title holder retired from cycling in April and has been living in Cambridge with his wife Alysha.

His gym coach since 2008, Angus Ross, also happens to live in Cambridge now, and the former New Zealand Bobsledder asked him if he wanted to be part of the team for the Winter Olympics in 2022.

“It’s been super fun, a new challenge which comes with its ups and downs. It has been a real eye opener.”

Eddie said bobsledders tended to either come from a track and field background – bringing speed, or another sport like he had, bringing strength and power.

While there was no ice for the team to work on in New Zealand, they were spending all their training time perfecting the start of the race.

“It’s all about the push. The first five seconds,” he said.

Eddie also has a coaching business ‘Dawkins Performance,’ where he helps other athletes, and started writing training manuals on cycling – which have now been picked up by the Japanese for translation.

“There is a massive cycling culture over there.”

Meanwhile, on the home front, things are also starting to get busy with wife Alysha due to have her first baby at the start of next year.

Eddie said they were naturally pretty excited and were pleased to make it past the first hurdle.

“It’s all been pretty positive so far.”

As well as three World titles, Eddie also picked up four silver medals at the World Track Cycling Championships, and a silver at Olympics level in Rio in 2016.

He said he missed Southland and didn’t see his family as much as he’d like to.