My story, written by Josh Tarling
There weren’t a lot of cycling opportunities in West Wales when I was growing up.
I loved growing up in Aberaeron, but it was only when I started to go further afield that my cycling began to improve. I needed to get out and test myself on different terrains, in different disciplines and, most importantly, against different people.
I’d always loved cycling and racing, right from a young age, but it was only when I started riding with other people that I was able to start really pushing myself.
I was pretty much a full-time cyclist from the age of 10. My family and I would drive up and down the country – sometimes even overseas – so I could test myself at everything and against everyone.
I’ve raced cyclocross in Belgium, track all over the place – winning junior European titles in the omnium and team pursuit – and, of course, on the road. I just loved racing against other people. But it’s racing against the clock where I seem to have really found my niche.
When I was just 12, I rode a 100-mile time-trial in four hours and 49 minutes. From there I’ve never looked back, becoming junior world champion in Wollongong in 2022, before taking a senior bronze medal at the world championships in Glasgow last year, and then winning the elite European title just a few months later.
At every big race – and quite a few of the smaller ones – I’ve got family members with me supporting me through the highs and lows. It brings a level of consistency to racing competitively which is nice. If it goes wrong, I can be grumpy with them, and they're there to comfort me, and if it goes well, I can celebrate with them, which is super nice.
Getting another national time-trial jersey in June was a great boost ahead of a busy summer calendar.
With the Olympic Games not far away, it’s all about sharpening up those final few bits of my performance. We’re getting there, though – hopefully I can deliver in the French capital later this month.
