Steve's bid for three Olympic gold medals
TO return home with three gold medals is more than possible in the eyes of 20-year-old Colne cyclist Steven Burke, who will head for the Beijing Olympics in less than two weeks.
With a strong team behind him, including the current world champion and world record holder, the former Colne Park High School pupil proudly says the Great Britain team pursuit squad is better than ever.
Although Steven, of Temple Street, admits it was the 2012 Olympics he had his sights set on, and the call-up to this year's Games came as a surprise, he feels ready to take on the challenge.
He said: "I've always thought it would be 2012, so I didn't expect it to come so soon. In the last month, though, I've trained so hard I think if I hadn't been picked I would've been disappointed. Four years is quite a long time to wait until the next Olympics."
He has been selected as the fifth member of the squad alongside Paul Manning, Geraint Thomas, Edward Clancy and Bradley Wiggins, all older than him and very supportive, said Steven, who is brother to Nathan (17) and Zoe (14).
Coming from a family of cyclists – his mum Sharon is a former member of team GBR and his granddad Brian Wesson is a keen road racer – Steven was introduced to cycling aged 14, older than most professional starters, when he began training at Manchester Velodrome.
His first bike was a second-hand Raleigh with a heavy steel frame, previously owned by his dad Alvin, and a world away from the 20,000 UK Sports Institute Honda BAR he will ride in the Olympics. But it was this bike that helped bag him his first national title aged 16 and gave him a thirst for success. Since then, he has claimed a national title every year, totalling eight.
This year, he claimed gold in the UCI Track World Cup in Copenhagen, and was a team pursuit gold medallist at last year's European Under-23 Championships in Germany.
Before cycling, Steven's passion was football when he played for Foulridge Minors. When he realised his potential as a cyclist, he ended his A-level studies which at the time he hoped would see him through to a career as an accountant.
Concentrating on becoming a professional cyclist has taken Steven around the world and he particularly loves Tuscany, Italy, where British Cycling's Olympic Academy is based.
In the run up to the Olympics, he has been training up to 10 hours a day, first at a camp in Majorca followed by another camp in Newport, Wales, before jetting off to China on August 4th where he will stay until August 25th.
Sharon said: "We're so proud of him. He's worked hard and deserves the chance. Steven has a one-set mind and he doesn't stop until he gets something he wants. Everything he's done, he's been a winner."
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Weather for Pendle
Tuesday 07 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -6 C to 2 C
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