http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: ""Would he have become a track cyclist if he hadn't grown up in Edinburgh?" en Thu, 21 May 2026 11:10:24 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36691 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:39:12 +0000 crowriver 36691@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Maybe not a monster, but Sir Chris was <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2008/08/19/uk-olympics-cycling-hoy-idUKPEK29827920080819?sp=true">inspired by aliens it seems</a>. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36690 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:35:55 +0000 crowriver 36690@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@kaputnik Apparently (according to wiki) he was a rugger b* and played for Watson's school team. Sturdy thighs are an asset for chasing leather eggs around a muddy field, and for rowing I'd guess.</p> <p>It does all rather scream 'Edinburgh public school boy'. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36684 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:01:11 +0000 chdot 36684@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Another very real factor was highly supportive parents - particularly his father who drove many miles for his son's BMX 'career'. </p> <p>I don't think they were particularly 'pushy' and I suspect, at an early age he was competitive/successful rather than "ambitious". </p> <p>Must read the book one day...</p> <p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoJVCpNkCEE" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoJVCpNkCEE</a> </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36683 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:59:27 +0000 steveo 36683@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><em>I'm sure you mean that in the nicest possible way...</em></p> <p>Any one who has legs the width of my torso is a monster!<br /> <em><br /> in the best possible taste</em> off course. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36682 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:52:52 +0000 chdot 36682@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>"The guy is a monster"</p> <p>I'm sure you mean that in the nicest possible way...</p> <p>Must be all the cornflakes he eats! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36681 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:51:34 +0000 kaputnik 36681@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Totally. he couldd have been a beast of an olympic walker ;)</p> <p>I think the question might better be "would Chris Hoy have been an Olympic medallist if he hadn't been born with his physical/physiological characteristics?".</p> <p>Answer, almost certainly no. Not in his chosen discipline(s) anyway. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36680 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:49:52 +0000 steveo 36680@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The guy is a monster what ever (physical) sport he got into he would have excelled at. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36679 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:45:59 +0000 kaputnik 36679@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>A younger Hoy was a fairly successful BMX racer prior to going to the track and was British number 2 and a junior-level rowist with some metalware to his name. He didn't get into track cycling until he was 18 or something. </p> <p>He may have rowed for his school (I don't know) but I don't think the cycling was really anything to do with private schooling as he got into that through club-level cycling. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36678 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:24:24 +0000 crowriver 36678@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The contrast with cyclists like Graeme Obree, David Millar or Robert Millar is stark! Hoy (or Sir Chris) fits the mould of elite athlete, drawn from and elevated to the establishment. The others are maverick outsiders by comparison. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3512#post-36672 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 13:24:19 +0000 chdot 36672@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>"<br /> Chris Hoy is an obvious example, and in fact he fits into both categories - he went to private school and lived in the only city in Scotland that had a velodrome.</p> <p>"</p> <p><a href="http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/topstories/Edinburgh39s-Olympic-legacy-puts-city39s.6809575.jp" rel="nofollow">http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/topstories/Edinburgh39s-Olympic-legacy-puts-city39s.6809575.jp</a></p> <p>"had a velodrome" - still does, just. </p>