A multiple world champion at junior level, Amy Cure has stepped up to the big time of cycling by winning two world titles and breaking a world record. Now the 22-year-old tyro from Tasmania has set her sights on grabbing gold at next year’s Olympic Games.
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WHAT’S HER STORY?
Born and raised in rural Penguin, Cure got into cycling by chance. “I grew up on a farm and I always loved riding my BMX bike,” she says. After seeing cycling close up at a local sports day, she decided to try racing. Soon after Cure got the chance to compete at the state titles and she won a few events, putting her in the frame for the nationals. At first the 12-year-old didn’t want to go, but on her father’s insistence she went and her future was set.
“When I went to my first nationals, I had only been riding for about three to four months,” Cure says. “I got an Australian record and a gold, silver and bronze. I realised I could probably do something with my cycling.”
A natural on the bike, Cure finished first in the Under 15s individual pursuit at the Australian Junior Track titles and bagged a second in the time trial in 2006. She followed that with gold, silver and two bronzes at the Under 17s titles in 2008. The following year she made her debut on the world junior circuit, securing a first and second at the Under 19s Junior Worlds in Russia. A long-distance rider with the ability to compete on both track and road events, Cure was billed as “the next big thing in women’s cycling” in 2010 when she was just 17.
Cure was picked for the London Olympics team but did not race, a setback that has since spurred her on. Last year she won the points race at the UCI World Championships, as well as a silver and bronze at the Commonwealth Games, and back in February she was part of the star Australian team that took out the team pursuit world title in a world-record time (pictured below). Repeating that feat in Brazil is the next step: “After reassessing my lead-up to London, I now want to make Rio; I want to be on that start line and win gold. That’s kind of put me in that headspace.”
WHO’S SHE LIKE?
Australia’s road queen, Anne Meares, and legendary sprinter Shane Perkins are two figures that Cure looks up to. “There’s a lot of different athletes you try and get a little bit out of to really benefit yourself to the maximum.”
Cure’s versatility and discipline are her biggest assets. Gary Sutton, coach of the Australian women’s track endurance team, raves about her honesty and dedication: “Amy challenges herself in every session – you always know she gives 100 percent. She is a great team player and is always honest with feedback and with her team-mates. What you see is what you get.”
The thrill of competing and representing Australia is what Cure loves most about the sport: “When you lay it all on the line on race day, results aside, I think that’s pretty special putting on the jersey for your home country.”
Cure spends part of the year based in Belgium riding for the Lotto-Soudal Ladies professional team. Despite her success at individual road events, it’s the Rio Olympics and the team pursuit that loom large: “I watched the Olympics as a young girl … watching the likes of Ian Thorpe winning gold medals, it’s something pretty special. It’s everyone’s dream to go out there and win gold. You don’t dream about getting a second or a third.”
Photo by Getty Images.