Were it not for Jonathan Mitchell’s life-threatening heart issues, the Glasgow Sprint Grand Prix may never have come into existence.
Just a few years ago, Mitchell was a promising track cyclist who was aiming for qualification for the Commonwealth Games. He had reached this level despite having been born with a hole in his heart but a routine check-up yielded results he did not want to hear; if he continued to train at the level he was, it could be potentially fatal.
The news came as quite a shock to Mitchell but the seriousness of the medical advice meant that terminating his cycling career immediately was the only option. But as one of those people, he admits himself, who needs to always be busy, he quickly got thinking about what he could do to keep himself occupied whilst remaining involved in cycling.
Immediately, he threw himself into coaching but his mind was still ticking over thinking about what else he could do. And so, the Glasgow Sprint Grand Prix was born with the aim of developing the sport across the board as well as attracting some top-level riders.
“I started talking about forming this event alongside Kenny Steele and essentially, we just wanted to see if it could be done,” explains Mitchell.
“The aims were two-fold; one was developing track cyclists and also to help develop the sport in Scotland and give everyone, regardless of age, ability and gender, the opportunity to race.
"We have graded sprints so it’s worthwhile for everyone, irrespective of their ability. Last year, the youngest rider we had was 16 and the oldest was 62. That democratises it and it means it’s all based on speed and that brings competition.”
Last year’s event was the inaugural one, and Mitchell dedication to the cause was highlighted by the fact that despite having open heart surgery just twelve days before it took place, he took no time off from organiser duties.
“The day after the operation, I was on the phone to Kenny hassling him about sponsors and things like that,” Mitchell laughed.
“I’m feeling good now though. The rehab from a open heart surgery is pretty extensive but I’m back at a relative level of fitness.”
This year’s event, which takes place today and tomorrow at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow, boasts a star-studded line-up. Olympic champion Callum Skinner is one of the most recognisable names but also in action is Commonwealth and Paralympic champion, Neil Fachie as well as a raft of British junior champions. At stake is the sprint trophy, which has been renamed in memory of Ivor Reid, who was a stalwart of the Scottish cycling community and passed away earlier this year, and also of note is the fact that Englishman Matt Rotherham, who is a former British sprint champion, has his sights set on producing a record-breaking ride.
“At last's year's event, six Scottish records were broken and this year, we had a bit of extra space in the programme,” says Mitchell.
“Chris Hoy’s flying start 500m record is 28.22 seconds so we were thinking we could give someone the chance to break that. It’s a record that’s not attempted too often and it’s definitely achievable.
"We’ve got quite a lot of riders who are keen to attempt it, including Matt Rotherham, so it’d be nice to see the record go.”
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