What began as a devastating running injury became the unlikely catalyst for an Olympic career. For Emma Pooley, a stress fracture in her foot in 2002 seemed like the end of her athletic world, but it ultimately launched her towards stratospheric success in professional cycling.
The Devastating Diagnosis
Pooley couldn't identify the exact moment her foot broke. The stress fracture developed gradually, becoming increasingly painful until even running – her primary source of confidence – became unbearable. "I ran on stubbornly, with a limp," she recalls.
When medical professionals delivered the crushing verdict – eight weeks without running – the news felt catastrophic. Having run every single day for nearly a decade, Pooley found herself crying in the hospital corridor. "I couldn't imagine even one week without running," she remembers. At the time, she believed this minor, self-inflicted injury would derail her athletic pursuits completely.
An Unwilling Transition to Two Wheels
After experimenting with swimming and finding it frustratingly monotonous, Pooley borrowed an oversized road bike. She approached cycling with the same dedication she'd applied to running, despite initially hating the sport.
Road cycling presented numerous challenges – from weather and traffic to mechanical problems and eye-watering expenses. The physical discomfort, particularly from the saddle, made her count down the days until she could return to running.
Her first club ride in Cambridge proved equally humbling. Dressed in inappropriate attire with sagging jogging tights and the "wrong" socks, she discovered the harsh realities of crosswinds and repairing punctures with frozen hands in the rain. Cycling remained miserable, and she couldn't wait to abandon the bike forever.
The Turning Point: Tea, Cake and Unexpected Joy
Almost imperceptibly, enjoyment began to creep into her cycling experience through the ritual of cafe stops. Club regulars knew every garden centre and village cafe within 100km of Cambridge, planning routes around tea and cake destinations.
"Over pint mugs of tea clutched in bluish hands, I began to enjoy the social side of cycling," Pooley notes. The kindness of fellow cyclists and interesting conversations transformed what had been a tedious hobby into something more meaningful.
When her foot finally healed after nearly two months, something unexpected happened – she didn't abandon cycling. Finding a better saddle helped, and soon she entered her first time trial, where she was beaten by a man wearing a gorilla suit.
The Road to Olympic Success
Within a year, Pooley bought a properly fitted bike and entered the national championships, finishing fourth. A move to Zurich for research work and a PhD introduced her to mountain cycling, where she discovered her strength as a climber.
Just five-and-a-half years after her unwilling detour into cycling, Pooley stood ready to compete in the 2008 Beijing Olympic time trial. That day, only Kristin Armstrong – winning the first of her three Olympic gold medals – would ride faster, earning Pooley an Olympic silver medal.
Her cycling career flourished after Beijing. She signed for a professional team, assisted teammates in winning major races, and claimed victories herself. In 2010, she achieved the remarkable double of winning both the time trial and road racing British championships, followed by the rainbow jersey as time trial world champion.
Pooley represented Great Britain in two more Olympic Games in London and Rio. When she transitioned to triathlon and duathlon, her cycling strength proved invaluable, helping her secure four duathlon world champion titles from 2014-2017. Even her return to competitive running benefited from cycling – she became Swiss trail-running champion in 2021 and finished 11th at the uphill world championships in 2023.
Reflecting on her unexpected journey, Pooley acknowledges that while winning races has been exhilarating, long mountain rides with friends provide even greater satisfaction. Her bike has taken her to quieter places with more awesome views than any start ramp, proving that sometimes our greatest successes emerge from what initially appear to be setbacks.
