The South Australian Sports Institute’s (SASI’s) newest recruit has impressed at the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships, claiming two gold medals, a silver, a bronze and a world record.
Amanda Reid delivered Australia’s first rainbow jersey at the World Championships in Glasgow, winning the Women C2 500m Time Trial by a margin of 3.940 seconds in a time of 38.378.
That time was a fraction slower than the new world record she set earlier in the day, eclipsing her own world best benchmark time in 38.162 seconds.
The win marks Amanda’s fourth consecutive in the C2 500m Time Trial and fifth since 2017, a count she had lost track of due to her success in para-cycling.
“It’s pretty cool – I didn’t realise it was my fifth. I only thought it was four in a row until a minute ago after stepping off the podium,” Reid said.
“The world record was very surprising considering the injuries I've had and moving states recently, so I was pretty happy with it.
“We thought I could possibly do a PB, but it was really a ‘hope for the best’ situation after an injury. So that’s what I did – just went out there and raced.”
While in Glasgow, the 26-year-old also defended her Women C2 Omnium title and picked up a silver in the Women C2 Scratch Race and bronze in the Women C2 Individual Pursuit.
Since moving from New South Wales to South Australia, Amanda has enjoyed utilising the SASI facilities to supplement her training regimen as a member of the National Paralympic cycling program in Adelaide.
“So far, it’s [been] pretty good. SASI has been very supportive of me coming over,” Reid said.
“[I have been] getting some good training in and enjoy my time while I’m down here.”
Remarkably, cycling is just one of the sports Amanda is proficient in.
Prior to beginning her professional cycling career in 2015, Amanda was an elite swimmer, claiming an extraordinary seven gold medals in the 2011 Global Games.
Additionally, Amanda is currently the defending world champion in snowboarding at the Winter Games.
Amanda, who lives with cerebral palsy and an intellectual impairment, is a proud Aboriginal woman with heritage originating from the Wemba Wemba and Guringai people.
Additionally, she is an ambassador for the Australia Institute of Sport’s (AIS’) ‘Share a Yarn’ program, which endeavours to link Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islanders with Australia’s elite athletes to learn more about different cultures, lands and histories.
SASI is proud to support Amanda in her pursuit of her goals.
