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Emma Pooley to retire from cycling and turn to triathlon

July 30, 2014
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The world of triathlon is set benefit from the retirement of British Olympic silver medallist Emma Pooley from cycling. Pooley announced that following the road race at the Commonwealth Games on Sunday, she will retire and turn her attention to distance running and the triathlon. Pooley will also compete in Thursday’s road time trial.

In an interview with Rouleur magazine Pooley said, “You have to go sometime. I considered retiring after the London Olympics but I didn’t feel like I was ready. I’ve been mulling it over and came to the conclusion that the Commonwealth Games is the perfect opportunity. It’s a big event, it’s almost at home and I want to go out properly, when I’ve planned it, and have no regrets.”

The 31-year-old Pooley won the world time-trial title in 2010 and took three stages of this year’s women’s Giro d’Italia. She took time off in 2013 to finish a PhD in geotechnical engineering. Along with Marianne Vos, Kathryn Bertine and Chrissie Wellington, Pooley was instrumental in creating Le Tour Entier which propelled the creation of women’s race at the Tour de France last weekend.

Pooley won the Lausanne Marathon last year in 2:44. She was fifth at Ironman Zurich in 2013 with a time of 9:44:57. With a focus on triathlon she will clearly be a force to reckon with.

“Looking back, there are so many highlights,” she said. “I’m super lucky to have been a professional cyclist, but there are other things I dream of doing as well. I’m 31, which is a good age for endurance sports, and I’m sure I can do better in triathlon if I focus on it. I’m so excited about running through mountains,” said Pooley.

“I’m very lucky in that I can make that decision [to retire]. For a lot of people the choice is made for them, either by injury or team dynamics. It’s a positive choice. . . .I could never have done what I’ve done in the sport without the support of British Cycling. When I got a result they noticed it and supported me to get to the world championships and the Olympics, they built me a bike and took me wind-tunnel testing. I’m hugely grateful that I’ve got to work with such talented people.”