Sir Chris Hoy announced retirement

Sir Chris Hoy announced his retirement from international competition; will miss Commonwealth Games in 2014.

10:21 20 April 2013

Sir Chris Hoy, who has won 19 international gold medals, has announced his retirement from international competition after competing for 11 years. The 37-year-old Scot was expected to compete at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Explaining his decision, he said: "I wanted to get a medal for Scotland. I didn't think I could so wanted someone else to take my place."
He added: "It is a hard time - it is one moment at the end of your career when you say 'enough is enough."

 

"It's a decision that I didn't take lightly and I thought about it very hard. In sport at the highest level you are dealing in the smallest margins and you can tell when you are good but not good enough."

 

Industry experts have nothing but praises for Sir Chris. British Olympic Association chairman Lord Coe praised his commitment to excellence while Sir Dave Brailsford, the director of the Great Britain cycling team, said that he couldn’t speak highly enough of Hoy.

 

Sir Chris revealed what he wants to do after his retirement. He He told the BBC in their report: "I'm looking forward to spending time with [wife] Sarra and putting something else in my life ahead of cycling.

 

"People say cycling is a sacrifice - it's not a sacrifice, you choose to do it. But every decision in your life is based around the sport."