People Features

Chris Opie will be writing exclusively for the BBC Cornwall website. Over the coming weeks you can read more about his training and hopes for the future and the 2012 Olympics. Here Chris tells you more about himself:

"Firstly, my name is Chris. I grew up on a small dairy and beef farm on the outskirts of Truro and was a pupil at Kea Primary and Penair Secondary schools.

Chris Opie racing

Ever since the age of 9 I have been passionate about cycling. It wasn't always that way, at 7 I broke my leg having just learnt to ride a bike and never wanted anything to do with 2 wheels. I started cycling competitively at the age of 10, competing mostly in the southwest but also in Wales and Manchester.

Skip forwards a couple of years and I competed in my first international race representing the British Schools Cycling Association team in Holland, during a week long series of races for under 15 cyclists from around Europe. I returned to this event for 5 years with reasonable success, winning various races.

2003 saw me represent Great Britain at the Youth Olympic Games, here I placed 6th from a field of 96 riders, again a successful result on the international scene.

Fast forwarding to 2005 which saw me compete and lead the National Junior series in Britain, I was despite this, not selected to represent Great Britain at the World or European Championships, a disappointment that was hard to deal with.

Success for Chris Opie

2006 and 2007 were 2 seasons which would see me over come 2 very big hurdles in my career, firstly with a slight eating disorder and in 2007 Glandular Fever, an illness that has taught me to train smarter than ever before. It took me over a year to fully recover from Glandular Fever, a painfully long time to sit back and plan my comeback in 2008.

In 2008 I was based in Holland and Belgium, for me it was a personal comeback. The cycling season begins each year in February, so to begin on June the 1st was quite a delay. The race I entered had been a goal for me ever since I found out I wasn't well.

I turned up, raced cautiously and achieved a feat that had escaped me for 3 years, to win a race at the highest amateur level. I was stood on the podium flanked by 2 professional cyclists! The season was a steep learning curve and in August had my career highlight, to win a 'stage' in the biggest race I had ever competed in (Ronde van de Provincie Antwerpen).

In 2009 my main goals will be re-establishing my reputation as one of the top cyclists in Britain and continuing my racing success on the continent, with the goal of signing a professional contract for the 2010 season."