Paris Olympic Games medallist, Nicole Shields has decided it is time to move on from life as a fulltime high performance cyclist.
The Central Otago rider, who won a silver medal with the women’s team pursuit on the track at the Paris Olympic Games, has announced her retirement from high performance sport.
Shields, 26, initially focussed on road cycling before she joined a training group on the velodrome at Invercargill. This led to selection in the New Zealand teams to the UCI Junior Track World Championships, where she was part of the team pursuit that won silver medals in Switzerland in 2016 and Italy in 2017.
She moved her focus back to the road, riding for USA Pro Continental team DNA Pro Cycling, racing in the USA and South America for three years until 2022.
Shields then reset her goals, returning to the track to earn a place in the Cycling New Zealand High Performance endurance track squad, ultimately with her strong performances earning a regular start and selection to the Paris Olympic Games.
She rode in the 4000m team pursuit qualifying where her New Zealand quartet came within 0.4s of the world record to top qualifiers, and ultimately secured a place in the final where they were edged by USA for the gold medal.
Following the massive commitment for the Olympic Games, Shields took a sabbatical, completing a remarkable adventure of riding 4,500km through East Africa on a mountain bike to raise funds to provide bikes for young children, amongst other things, to help them travel to and from school.
Cycling New Zealand High Performance Director, Ryan Hollows, said that Shields has proved an outstanding athlete in the high performance programme.
“Nicole’s dedication and desire earned her a place on the team for Paris and ultimately on to the podium for a well-deserved silver medal,” said Hollows. “On and off the bike, Nicole has been a massive contributor and we wish her the very best in her next adventure.”
