March 22, 2023

The Warriors * 3 female Afghan cyclists who fled the Taliban to pursue their Olympic dreams

53 minutes

Once in a while you hear a sports story that is too interesting to ignore. This is one of them. A couple of years ago today's guest, James Hey (The-CycleCoach), was asked by a charity if he could help supply 7 bikes to 7 Afghan girls who loved cycling. Of course he said yes, and this podcast is about that journey.

Cycling is one of the many things forbidden for girls by the Taliban in Afghanistan, and to go against this can have serious repercussions. These girls eventually left their families, escaped to Pakistan, spent 15 months in safe houses and finally made their way to the UK as refugees. They have continued to pursue their passion for cycling, and 3 of them have a possibility of racing at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Please listen to the podcast so you can hear James and I chat about the story in full detail, and the part he's played as the mentor and cycle coach of the three ladies.

James is an accomplished triathlete and cyclist, having completed 2 Ironman events and represented GB as an age grouper at the Gran Fondo World Championships 2018 in Varese, Italy. To find out more about James please visit his Instagram page, thecyclecoach.

James' book recommendation is Chasing Excellence written by Ben Bergeron about his approach to helping build the world's finest athletes.

If you're interested in reading some great blogs and useful articles about training athletes, James recommends checking out the blog www.wattkg.com written by Martin Bonnie-Svendsen, a doctor in Norway who's also a very keen amateur cyclist who understands training and the science of cycling. You can also watch the short BBC video with the girls and James.

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Visit Simon's website for more information about his coaching programmes. Links to all of Simon's social media channels can be found here. For any questions please email [email protected].

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By Simon Ward

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