'Cooke was always a special talent'

ONE person who was not surprised at Nicole Cooke's dramatic gold medal performance in the Olympics cycling road race on Sunday was Ann Bowditch.

The local cycling star rode with Cooke (pictured) a decade ago, when the Welsh rider was a hot talent still a long way away from her finest hour in Beijing.

'I remember riding with Nicole when she was only 15 or 16, but she was winning all of her races back then too. It was clear she was a special talent.'

Bowditch recalls one race in particular, the 1999 British National Road Race Championships, where Cooke became the youngest ever winner.

'She was only 16 and she was racing against Yvonne McGregor, who was really the cream of British cycling at the time. She beat her and it was one of the most incredible performances I have ever seen,' she said.