Crystal Lane scoops top awards

The British para-cyclist said “I am delighted to have won these awards, it was amazing to receive a Special Recognition Award but then to receive the Star of the Future Award is just fantastic. I can’t wait to make full use of the years one-to-one mentoring I will now receive. I’m sure it will really benefit and help me in my dream to become a Paralympian.” The evening, hosted by James Corden and Kirsty Gallacher, celebrated some of the most inspirational British sporting performances over the past year. Other winners on the night included Dai Green, Mark Cavendish, Hayley Turner, the England Cricket Team and Tom Aggar. 

Crystal competes in the C5 category and has had some fantastic achievements this year. She took bronze medal at the Para-Cycling Road Championships behind teammate and World Champion Sarah Storey. She has won four out of five of her international appearances for Great Britain and also won the C5 500m Time Trial at the British National Track Championships. Crystal also finished within the top 20 cyclists at the able-bodied British National Track Championships 2010, a great achievement for a para-athlete.

As well as pursuing her ambitions to compete in the London 2012 Paralympic Games, Crystal would like to build a career in sports nutrition. She completed her degree in Exercise and Sports Science and was a Sports Scholar at the University of Exeter who benefitted from the support of the High Performance Programme and by her own admissions wouldn’t be where she is now without it. She is now studying an MSc in Sports Nutrition at Loughborough University.