Wikipedia

Alex Dowsett

Alex Edward Albert Dowsett (born 3 October 1988) is a British former professional road racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI WorldTeam Israel–Premier Tech.[6] He was a time trial specialist, and in 2015, he broke track cycling's world hour record by 446 metres (1,463 feet), with a distance of 52.937 kilometres (32.894 miles).

Alex Dowsett
Dowsett in 2019
Personal information
Full nameAlex Edward Albert Dowsett
NicknameThe Tiger
Born (1988-10-03) 3 October 1988 (age 36)
Maldon, Essex, England[1]
Height1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Weight73 kg (161 lb)[2]
Team information
Disciplines
  • Road
  • Track
RoleRider
Rider typeTime trialist
Amateur team
2009100% Me
Professional teams
2010Trek–Livestrong
2011–2012Team Sky
2013–2017Movistar Team
2018–2019Team Katusha–Alpecin[3][4]
2020–2022Israel Start-Up Nation[5]
Major wins
Grand Tours
Giro d'Italia
2 individual stages (2013, 2020)

Stage races

Bayern Rundfahrt (2015)

One-day races and Classics

National Time Trial Championships
(2011–2013, 2015, 2016, 2019)

World Hour record

2 May 2015, 52.937 km
Medal record
Representing  Great Britain
European Road Championships
Gold medal – first place 2010 Ankara Under-23 time trial
Representing  England
Men's road bicycle racing
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Glasgow Time trial
Silver medal – second place 2010 Delhi Time trial
World Championships
Representing Movistar Team
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Richmond Team time trial

Early life

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The son of former British Touring Car Championship driver Phil Dowsett,[7] Dowsett was educated at Elm Green Preparatory School in Little Baddow, followed by King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford. He initially took up swimming as a sport, swimming up to five days a week, before starting cycling on a mountain bike along with his father.[8][9]

Career

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Early career

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Dowsett began his career at the Maldon and District Cycling Club in the City of Chelmsford.[10] His talent was soon recognised and Dowsett became part of the British Olympic Academy development team. He won the under-23 version of the British Time Trial Championships in 2008 and 2009. In 2010, he rode for American Trek–Livestrong team and won the under-23 European time trial championship.[11] He also won a silver medal in the Time Trial at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Team Sky (2011–12)

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Dowsett at the 2011 Tour of Britain

Dowsett signed for British-based Team Sky as a neo-pro for the 2011 season. His first victory for Sky came in the London Nocturne event. Dowsett finished fifth overall in the Danmark Rundt, helping teammate Simon Gerrans to overall victory. He won the fifth stage of the Tour du Poitou-Charentes to finish second overall. In September, he won the British National Time Trial Championships. Dowsett won the Stage 8a time trial of the Tour of Britain.

In March 2012, Dowsett broke his elbow in the Three Days of De Panne and as a result missed the classics season. Dowsett recovered to finish second in the National Road Race Championships, and later retained his National Time Trial Championships title. Later in September, Dowsett competed at the UCI World Road Race Championships in all three men's elite events, with a best placing of eighth in the individual time trial.

Movistar Team (2013–17)

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On 30 October 2012, Dowsett signed with the Spanish Movistar Team for the 2013 season hoping to gain a ride at a Grand Tour.[12] After competing in the Classics season for Movistar Team, Dowsett was selected to ride the Giro d'Italia, his first Grand Tour appearance. Dowsett helped Movistar Team take second place in the team time trial on stage two. On stage eight, a 54.8 km (34.1 mi) individual time trial, Dowsett set the fastest time to record his biggest career victory to date, setting a time ten seconds faster than the second placed Bradley Wiggins.[13] In June, Dowsett won the British National Time Trial Championships for the third year in a row despite crashing early on in the course.[14]

 
Dowsett at the 2014 Tour of Britain

In May 2014 Dowsett set a new British 10-mile time trial record in Cambridgeshire, clocking in at 17 minutes 20 seconds and beating Michael Hutchinson's previous record by 25 seconds.[15] Competing for England at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Dowsett won gold in the Individual Time Trial.[16] After a long breakaway, Dowsett took the lead of the Tour of Britain on the sixth stage[17] but lost it before the end of the race to Dylan van Baarle and finished eighth overall.[18] His team announced that Dowsett had signed a three-year contract extension with them in September.[19]

 
Dowsett (centre) in the leading group of the 2015 Vattenfall Cyclassics

In December 2014, Dowsett announced he would attempt to break the UCI Hour Record at the Lee Valley VeloPark on 27 February 2015.[20] However, he was forced to postpone the attempt after breaking his collarbone in a training accident.[21] The attempt instead took place at the Manchester Velodrome on 2 May 2015[22] where Dowsett set a new world record of 52.937 kilometres (32.894 miles), beating Rohan Dennis' previous record by almost half a kilometre.[23] Two weeks later, Dowsett won his first ever stage race, the Bayern Rundfahrt, where he claimed the overall victory a day after winning the Stage 4 individual time-trial. In June 2015 Dowsett clinched his fourth national time trial title.[24] He was selected for the 2015 Tour de France but was forced abandon the race half way round due to an injury.[25][26]

Team Katusha–Alpecin (2018–19)

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In August 2017, it was announced that Dowsett would join Team Katusha–Alpecin for the 2018 season.[3][9] Following the last minute break up of the team in 2019,[27] he initially thought he would rest from professional cycling in 2020 and return to his local Maldon club, to focus on the Olympics and regaining the hour record.

Israel Start-Up Nation (2020–22)

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Instead of his initial sabbatical from professional cycling, Dowsett was part of the Team Katusha–Alpecin merger with Israel Cycling Academy, which became the new team Israel Start-Up Nation for 2020.[28] He placed fourth in the time trial at the European Road Championships,[29] and ninth in the time trial at the UCI Road World Championships.[30] Following this, Dowsett contested the Giro d'Italia and won the eighth stage from a six-rider breakaway, soloing to victory from 18 kilometres (11 miles) remaining.[31] In November, he extended his contract with Israel Start-Up Nation for a further two years.[32] Michael Hutchinson coaches Dowsett. In 2021, Dowsett attempted the UCI Hour Record, and completed a distance of 54.555 kilometres (33.899 miles), at the time the third furthest in the modern history of the Hour Record.[33]

In August 2022, Dowsett announced that he would be retiring from professional cycling at the end of the season.[34]

Personal life

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Dowsett has haemophilia and wears a necklace, detailing his medical needs, when out riding.[35][36] Speaking on ITV's Cycle Show in July 2013, Dowsett cited this medical condition as being a key factor in his choosing competitive cycling in his youth, above other sports, because contact games such as football and rugby were considered too risky. His mother inserted knee and shoulder pads into his school uniform and he wore special trainers.[9]

He is believed to be the only able-bodied elite sportsman or woman with the condition.[8] As a result, he has a special exemption from the Union Cycliste Internationale's no needles policy, introduced in 2011,[37] to inject himself with the clotting protein Factor VIII every 48 hours.[8]

Dowsett started the charitable foundation Little Bleeders to raise awareness of haemophilia and to encourage and support young haemophiliacs to engage with sport. He also has his own YouTube channel, where he documents his life as a professional cyclist.

Major results

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Source:[38]

2005
1st   Time trial, National Junior Road Championships
1st   Overall Junior Tour of Wales
1st   Mountains classification
2006
1st   Team pursuit, UEC European Junior Track Championships
1st   Time trial, National Junior Road Championships
3rd Overall Junior Tour of Wales
1st   Mountains classification
2007
6th Rutland–Melton CiCLE Classic
2008
National Under-23 Road Championships
1st   Time trial
4th Road race
1st Prologue (TTT) Tour Alsace
2009
1st   Time trial, National Under-23 Road Championships
1st Richmond Grand Prix
7th Time trial, UCI Under-23 Road World Championships
2010
1st   Time trial, UEC European Under-23 Road Championships
1st Chrono des Nations Espoirs
1st Stage 5 Cascade Cycling Classic
2nd   Time trial, Commonwealth Games
8th Tour of the Battenkill
2011
1st   Time trial, National Road Championships
1st London Nocturne
1st Stage 8a (ITT) Tour of Britain
2nd Overall Tour du Poitou-Charentes
1st Stage 5
3rd Chrono des Nations
5th Overall Danmark Rundt
6th Overall Ster ZLM Toer
2012
National Road Championships
1st   Time trial
2nd Road race
2nd Duo Normand (with Luke Rowe)
8th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2013
1st   Time trial, National Road Championships
1st Stage 8 (ITT) Giro d'Italia
2nd London Nocturne
2014
1st   Time trial, Commonwealth Games
1st Stage 3 (ITT) Circuit de la Sarthe
2nd   Madison, National Track Championships (with Joe Holt)
3rd Time trial, National Road Championships
7th Overall Tour du Poitou-Charentes
8th Overall Tour of Britain
2015
Hour record:   52.937 km
1st   Time trial, National Road Championships
1st   Overall Bayern Rundfahrt
1st Stage 4 (ITT)
3rd   Team time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2016
1st   Time trial, National Road Championships
1st Stage 7 (ITT) Tour de Pologne
2017
1st Stage 2b (ITT) Circuit de la Sarthe
2nd Time trial, National Road Championships
10th Overall Dubai Tour
2018
3rd Time trial, National Road Championships
5th Time trial, UEC European Road Championships
2019
National Road Championships
1st   Time trial
4th Road race
5th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
5th Time trial, UEC European Road Championships
10th Overall ZLM Tour
2020
1st Stage 8 Giro d'Italia
4th Time trial, UEC European Road Championships
9th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2021
1st Stage 1b (TTT) Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

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Grand Tour 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
  Giro d'Italia 147 — — — — 120 — 120 DNF 134
  Tour de France — — DNF — — — 151 — — —
  Vuelta a España did not contest during his career

Championship results timeline

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Event 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
  World Championships Road race DNF — — DNF — — — — — —
Time trial 8 41 20 17 12 — 29 5 9 —
Team time trial 9 — 6 3 6 6 11 Race did not exist
Mixed team relay Race did not exist — NH 5
  European Championships Time trial Event did not exist — — 5 5 4 —
Road race — — — DNF DNF —
Legend
— Did not compete
DNF Did not finish
NH Not held

References

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  1. ^ "Alex Dowsett Biography". Team Sky. Archived from the original on 10 September 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Alex Dowsett – Team KATUSHA ALPECIN". Archived from the original on 8 July 2019. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Britain's Alex Dowsett to leave Movistar for Katusha-Alpecin". BBC Sport. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  4. ^ "Katusha-Alpecin announce reduced 24-rider roster for 2019". Cyclingnews.com. 20 November 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  5. ^ Ostanek, Daniel (11 December 2019). "Israel Cycling Academy become Israel Start-Up Nation as WorldTour beckons". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  6. ^ "Israel Start-Up Nation". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 1 January 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  7. ^ "A family affair for Airwaves Racing at Dunton shakedown". Airwaves Racing. Motorbase Performance. 29 September 2011. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
  8. ^ a b c "Alex Dowsett: Haemophilia no barrier to cyclist's hour record bid". bbc.co.uk. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  9. ^ a b c Robinson, J. (2020, February). Alex Dowsett Profile. There Will be Blood: Alex Dowsett is a former Hour record holder, Grand Tour stage winner and seven-time British time-trial champion. He's also a haemophiliac-something that makes his place in the professional peloton unique. Cyclist:The Thrill of the Ride, (96), 66–71.
  10. ^ [1] Archived 23 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Lionel Birnie (6 November 2009). "Dowsett signs with Trek-LiveStrong". Cycling Weekly. IPC Media Sports & Leisure network. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  12. ^ Wynn, Nigel (30 October 2012). "Dowsett signs to Movistar team for 2013". Cycling Weekly. IPC Media Limited. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  13. ^ Wynn, Nigel; Brown, Gregor (11 May 2013). "Alex Dowsett wins Giro d'Italia stage eight time trial". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  14. ^ "Dowsett claims third straight British time trial title". Cyclingnews.com. 20 June 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
  15. ^ Wynn, Nigel (31 May 2014). "Alex Dowsett sets new British 10-mile time trial record". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  16. ^ "Alex Dowsett wins men's time trial gold". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
  17. ^ "Brändle claims second successive win at Tour of Britain". Cyclingnews.com. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  18. ^ "Dylan van Baarle wins 2014 Tour of Britain". VeloNews. 14 September 2014. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  19. ^ "Great Britain's Alex Dowsett signs new three-year contract with Movistar". The Guardian. 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  20. ^ "Alex Dowsett announces Hour Record attempt for February 27". 19 December 2014.
  21. ^ "Dowsett postpones hour record bid". BBC Sport.
  22. ^ Clarke, Stuart (27 April 2015). "Storey shares Hour Record advice as Dowsett's attempt draws near". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  23. ^ "Alex Dowsett sets new Hour Record of 52.937km". cyclingnews.com. 2 May 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  24. ^ Allen, Eddie (25 June 2015). "Dowsett, Simmonds and Davies take British time trial titles". British Cycling. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
  25. ^ "2015 Tour de France start list". Velo News. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  26. ^ "Movistar's Alex Dowsett abandons with injury". BBC Sport. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
  27. ^ Ballinger, Alex (3 October 2019). "Israel Cycling Academy confirm Katusha-Alpecin takeover". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  28. ^ Ostanek, Daniel (28 December 2019). "Dowsett sets sights on 2020 Olympics after Israel Start-Up Nation move". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  29. ^ Farrand, Stephen (24 August 2020). "European Championships: Stefan Küng wins elite men's time trial title". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  30. ^ Ballinger, Alex (25 September 2020). "Imola 2020 World Championships: What is Alex Dowsett's unbranded time trial bike?". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  31. ^ Fotheringham, Alasdair (10 October 2020). "Giro d'Italia: Alex Dowsett claims potential career-saving stage win". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  32. ^ Bennett, Tom (13 November 2020). "Alex Dowsett signs two-year contract with Israel Start-Up Nation". Eurosport. Discovery, Inc. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  33. ^ "No regrets for Alex Dowsett amid 'overwhelming' response to Hour Record attempt". Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  34. ^ Becket, Adam (29 August 2022). "Alex Dowsett to retire from professional cycling". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  35. ^ Ellis Bacon (22 March 2010). "Dowsett delivers for Trek-Livestrong". Cycling News. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  36. ^ Bacon, E. (2014). The Best of Luck. In: E. Bacon and L. Birnie, ed., The Cycling Anthology: Volume One. London: Yellow Jersey Press, pp.178–191.
  37. ^ Farrand, Stephen (2 February 2015). "UCI approves no needle policy". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  38. ^ "Alex Dowsett". FirstCycling.com. FirstCycling AS. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alex Dowsett.
Records
Preceded by UCI hour record (52.937 km)
2 May 2015 – 7 June 2015 		Succeeded by
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