Keeping Coaching Out, 6X Olympian Laura Kenny Unveils Her Post-retirement Plans: “I Want to Help”

GB cycling icon Laura Kenny may be out of the competition arena, but her wins still resonate. The 5x Olympic gold medalist was on her way to the Paris Olympics, but she’ll not be present in full capacity. She officially retired on March 18, 2024, while sharing “I always knew deep down I would know when the right time was” with the BBC. The 2012 London Olympics was her career highlight, the same year she met her husband.

Bagging two golds in the team pursuit and omnium, Kenny repeated the feat at the 2016 Rio Games. This time, she bagged double the number, which rounded off to 4 Olympic golds. But following her next Olympic victory in 2021, she fell at the mouth of back-to-back hardships. Fearlessly rising back up, the Olympian unveils her post-retirement plans.

Cycling icon Laura Kenny has a good move up her sleeves

Kenny faced a “serious confidence crisis” in Birmingham in 2022. That was enough hint that her retirement was nearing. But training alongside her sister Emma Trott, a fellow former road racing cyclist, has not only refined her skills but also exposed her to resources that most budding stars miss out on. And now, she wishes to enlighten the younger generations with her wisdom. 

“There’s nothing set in stone but there are things I’m so interested in doing. Something to help the younger generation, whether that could be some kind of academy”, said Kenny. Being a coach would be tough beyond comprehension. So, to keep her mental health in check, “she wants to do something in the background that would help the youngsters have the opportunities” she had. Speaking of mental health, Kenny doesn’t have a pleasant history with it.

Kenny’s setbacks seasoned her as a person

The year she became victorious in the women’s Madison at the Summer Games, also had bad news ensuing. In the ninth week of her second pregnancy, she suffered a miscarriage. Shortly after, she underwent an ectopic pregnancy surgery. These were enough to shatter her completely. In July 2023, she welcomed her second son without any complications. But the second dent in the heart was an extra layer of misery, but it just made her more knowledgeable.

“It sounds odd, but my advice when it comes to protecting your mental health is don’t engage. If there are things – be it the news, comments from other people, social media – which make you anxious or upset, learn to tune it out or turn it off completely”, said she who gets derailed by the slightest meanness. To start with, “It’s important to remember we’re the ones in control of our emotional wellbeing” did the job for her. Hopefully, she will surface with more such life lessons.

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