It has now been confirmed that Sarah Storey will ride for Great Britain in the team sprint at next month’s Para-Cycling Track World Championships, taking place in Los Angeles. The event is the final opportunity for countries to obtain points and earn qualification places for the London 2012 Paralympics; with international cycling rules now allowing mixed teams, Storey, who was born with a deformed left hand and switched to cycling after a successful career as a Paralympic swimmer (16 medals, including five gold) will line up with Jody Cundy and Darren Kenny.
The 34-year-old was part of the women’s Olympic team pursuit squad before being dropped last month, ending her hopes of becoming Britain’s first ever Paralympic and Olympic athlete. Writing on her website (www.teamstoreysport.com) at the time she said: ‘I have always said that London 2012 is about riding as many events as I am good enough for and so now it is important for me to concentrate on the other events I have at the Games…I always said the Team Pursuit was another opportunity to become the best athlete I could be and it would be a bonus if I was able to make the event work alongside the events in which I am Para-cycling World Champion…’
