Sir Jason Kenny admits the decision to retire ‘wasn’t easy’ and he wanted to carry on to Paris 2024

Sir Jason Kenny admits the decision to retire ‘wasn’t easy’ and reveals he wanted to carry on to Paris 2024 but Britain’s greatest Olympian insists the opportunity to coach Team GB sprint squad was too good to pass up


Sir Jason Kenny admitted he was a ‘little bit sad’ after confirming his retirement from cycling on Wednesday night.

Sportsmail exclusively revealed last week that Britain’s greatest Olympian was to bring the curtain down on his glittering career and become the new men’s podium sprint coach of British Cycling.

Kenny, 33, had intended to carry on to Paris 2024 but said the opportunity to coach the Team GB sprint squad at the next Olympics was too good to pass up. He bows out after winning his record seventh gold medal at last summer’s Tokyo Games.

Sir Jason Kenny admitted he was a ‘little bit sad’ after confirming his retirement from cycling 

‘It wasn’t an easy decision,’ said Kenny. ‘I genuinely wanted to carry on to Paris, but I creak quite a lot these days and I always knew I wanted to go into coaching off the back of it, and this opportunity came along.

‘This opportunity might not come here again. If they got a good coach they could be in the role for potentially 10 years, so I thought I’d go for it now. I think if I hadn’t got the job I would have carried on racing in all likelihood.

‘I am a little bit sad because all I’ve known is riding and competing. But I’m quite excited to get stuck into the job.’

The seven-time gold medallist admitted it 'wasn't an easy decision' to make

The seven-time gold medallist admitted it ‘wasn’t an easy decision’ to make 

British Cycling performance director Stephen Park said: ‘It’s almost impossible to comprehend the level of talent, dedication and resilience needed to top the podium seven times across four Olympic Games.

‘Jason has made a magnificent contribution to our team, and I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to hold on to all of that knowledge and experience as he embarks on his career as a coach.

‘We understand the vital importance of developing great riders to become great coaches, and we look forward to working with Jason as he develops his own style to support the medal ambitions of others over the years ahead.’

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