Joanna Rowsell

Joanna Rowsell was born on December 5, 1988, in Carshalton, Greater London. Her cycling career began to take shape after being identified by British Cycling’s Talent Team programme in 2004. Early successes included winning junior national competitions in 2005 and 2006, specifically the British National Track Championships individual pursuit in both years. She also secured the National Women’s Road Race Series in 2006. Rowsell consistently demonstrated strong performances, earning third place in the British National Road Race Championships in 2006 and later taking third in the 3 km pursuit and points race at the National Track Championships in 2007.

Her professional trajectory accelerated with her first World Title in 2008 at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Manchester, as a key member of the women’s team pursuit. This marked the beginning of a highly successful period in team pursuit cycling. She was part of the Great Britain team that set new world records and secured gold medals at both the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Rowsell further cemented her legacy with multiple World Championship titles in the team pursuit, winning in 2008, 2009, 2012, and 2014. Her individual prowess was also recognized with a gold medal in the individual pursuit at the 2014 World Championships in Cali. She was appointed MBE in the 2013 New Year Honours for her contributions to cycling and continued to achieve success, including four European team pursuit golds.

Rowsell announced her retirement from competitive cycling in March 2017, stating a desire to explore new opportunities. Following her retirement, she pursued academic interests, including human biology at Manchester Metropolitan University and subsequently began studying medicine at St. George’s Hospital Medical School in 2020. She remains connected to the world of sport as a member of the British Olympic Association’s Athletes’ Commission and has taken on the role of Partnerships and Consultancy Manager at Women in Sport.