In
2006 Nikki Harris finally got recognition for all the hard work she puts into
the track, when she won the Bronze medal in the Points race at the Sydney World
Cup.
The
event took place in early March just before the Melbourne Commonwealth Games,
so it was a dry run for the big event later in the month.
“I
was in great form, I was well and had a good race plan to follow. It’s not
everyday that everything falls into place but this day it did”
The
race was extremely close, with Italian Vera Carrera taking the Gold with 33
points, although Nikki was unsure of where she finished. It turned out that she
just missed out on the silver medal by one point to Spain’s Olaberria
Dorronsoro, but this meant Nikki claimed the Bronze and in the process had won
her first World Cup medal.
“When
looking at the board afterwards and seeing that I had got my first world cup
medal I have never been happier and I just want more and more days like this!!”
Nikki
got into to cycling at an early age thanks to her Dad who quit Motocross due to
injuries and instead turned to Cyclo Cross. Nikki then got hooked on the sport
and quickly became successful winning four BSCA National Championship’s (TT,
MTB, Circuit Race and Grass Track) way back in 1998 as an eleven year old.
The Multi Talented Nikki Harris
It
was clear to see then that from an early age Nikki was talented at any cycling
discipline that she chose to compete in, winning countless events in each
discipline. However until 2004 Nikki was seen as primarily an off-road cyclist.
With her palmares full off victories in Cyclo Cross events such as the National
Trophy and MTB championships such as her Gold medal in the 2004 Youth
Commonwealth Games and her U18 National Title win in the same year.
Only
recently has Nikki started to concentrate solely on Road and Track events, but
as her medal at the Sydney World Cup proves, she is still successful.
“I enjoy all different cycling disciplines
and I’ve been lucky enough to race in each one since an early age, however I
haven’t really got a favourite”
“I like track for the way it makes you
feel, so fast and speedy and exhilarating, MTB for the technical aspect of
going through each section and not knowing what’s round the next corner”
“Cyclo –cross for the intensity and full
out effort that hurts so much, and the road racing because of it being so
unpredictable; anything can happen at any time”.
With
her father being responsible for introducing Nikki to cycling, her family are
obviously very supportive of their daughter.
“My
friends and family are really supportive of my cycling and are proud to tell
people what I do although I get very embarrassed when they decide to tell
people such as the guy/girl at the checkout in Asda in front of me!”
Nikki
considers their support as being instrumental in her success as a cyclist.
“If it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t even be a cyclist, another reason is my
old coach Mike Johnson, who even though I have everything I need from my team
and BC, is still always there when I need him”
“Sometimes it’s really hard, when results aren’t going my way or training
is tough and I might not always see the bigger picture, but my boyfriend Matt is
always there for me and helps me see the good things, cheers me up and gets me
back on track”
Nikki is the 2004 Youth Commonwealth Games MTB Champion
And as Sydney
shows all the hard work does pay off, and success comes eventually.
In 2005 Nikki visited the Swiss Cycling School run by French legend Frédéric Magné, she considered the experience extremely valuable to her career
"In Switzerland, the training starts in the morning after an early time of 7am breakfast.
Everything here is based around your training, we ride to the cycling centre on
our town bikes, the other guys who are here usually have either a French or
English lesson at 8 till 9.30 and I usually use this time to go in the library
and check me emails."
"The first training session starts at 10 till 12 this is
either a gym, track or road session, we have lunch from 12-1 then we chill out
for a bit and watch tv before we get changed for our next training session which
starts at 2 till 4. We watch some more tv or check emails then have our tea
which is from 5.30 till 6."
"After tea we then ride back to the halls and watch
some tv then go to bed it's a very strange kind of atmosphere to live in, its
good because everyone is here to improve, a lot of the people I know here don't
have the facilities in their countries nor the coaches like we have in
Manchester so for them this is the best possible place they could come to. In
between training sessions it does get quite boring, I usually spend quite a few
hours on the phone calling people back home to keep me entertained I was only there
for 3 weeks I can imagine it to be a lot harder if you live here for months or
years like Vicki Pendleton and Ross Edgar did, but I guess you learn to deal with that."
Taking a break from training
"Being here has made me realise
how lucky our national team is to have such a good base etc to train. The days
through the week till Saturday are all like the above and Sunday is a rest day,
we get to have a lie in and then we go to this pizzeria nearby for lunch and
tea. This is good as you can relax and use the time to watch dvds or whatever"
Like many of her fellow cyclists, Nikki starts the day with a road ride before
transferring to the track in the afternoon. She is currently training hard for
the Manchester Track World Cup, and aims to put in a good performance that will
allow her to qualify for the World Championships in Majorca,
later in the year.
Nikki also aims to ride some international stage races and one day events
in 2007 with her new team Global Racing, formerly Fat Birds UK, before riding
the European and World Road Race Championships for Great Britain.
Whilst
not cycling Nikki enjoys shopping and listening to music by the Kooks and
anything off her Clubland CDs. She also enjoys watching her favourite film
Shrek and American TV shows The OC and Desperate Housewives whilst eating the Brammeier speciality Chicken
Faijtas.
If
cycling wasn’t a career option Nikki see’s herself as still having a career in
sport.
“I would probably be a Personal trainer or something quite physical, I
wouldn’t be the person sat at a desk from 9 to 5”
With
the 2007 Tour de France coming to London, Nikki
was chosen by the Transport for London
(TfL) to be a Cycling Ambassador for the event. Along with fellow ambassador
Bradley Wiggins, Nikki is seen as an inspiration figure to young cyclists
across the country.
Nikki (Left) with Katie Curtis (Centre) and Lizzie Armistead (Right) at the European Track Champs in Athens last year
In the build up to London hosting the
Grand Départ of the Tour de France Nikki and Brad will work with Transport for
London to encourage Londoners to cycle, which is as we all know is a quick,
cheap, healthy and environmentally friendly way to get around the capital.
Part of these efforts include a new
marketing campaign “You’re better off by bike”, which will run on television,
radio, posters, and in newspapers, gyms, petrol stations and supermarkets. For
more info: http://www.tourdefrancelondon.com/en/get_active/get_on_your_bike/
Nikki won the Tour of Britain Support race and is now an ambassador for the 2007 Tour de France's visit to London
Nikki maybe somebody that thousands of young cyclists across the country
look up to, however the defending champion at this year’s Women’s World Road
Race championships shall be Dutch rider Marianne Vos, and she is a rider whom
Harris has a great deal of respect for, even though she’s two years younger.
Vos, was the 2006 Cyclo Cross World Champion, and despite recently losing
this crown to French rider Maryline Salvetat still has a great future ahead of her.
“What Marianne achieved in 2006 just goes to prove that if you are
talented and work hard it will pay off”
“She has no fear when
racing with the top women in the world and she is prepared to put herself out
there and give it her all no matter who she is up against”.
“It’s
just inspiring to see someone like Marianne who was up there in the junior
rankings to move on straight away and win many big races as a first year
senior, and despite her success she is really down to earth which is even more
inspiring”
Nikki getting ready for a Road Race
Nikki also looks up to teammate Geraint Thomas, who she says has a vast
amount of knowledge, despite only being seven months older than her.
“I can just sit there for hours listening to what he has to say, it’s
amazing the things he knows and the knowledge he has to offer, thanks
Geraint!!!”
On another note Nikki also comments on Revolution 15, where she met the
legendary Graeme Obree.
“He’s another inspirational figure for both his cycling achievements and
his home-made bikes, however he looked a bit of a fruitcake, comical
nevertheless!”
Like
Graeme, Nikki is also passionate about her equipment and commented:
I’m really fond of my new Shimano
Hollowtech bottom bracket. I just love the way the bearings run so smooth. I
often remove my bottom bracket in the evenings and fiddle with it whilst
watching TV”
