Latest news with #DaveRyding
BBC News
17-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Struggle of ski siblings aiming to follow Olympic ace Ryding
The ladle and the monkey wrench are not the usual tools of choice for Alpine ski racers hoping to follow in the tracks of Olympian Dave Ryding, but for the Holmes siblings, they are a stark Lancashire pair dream of following Ryding, often billed as Britain's greatest skier, into Olympic and World Cup glory, after the 38-year-old announced he will retire at the end of next rise to the top began at Pendle Ski Club, which has also fired the imagination, and honed the raw ability, of 22-year-old Robert Holmes and his sister Charlotte, who hail from Barrowford, just eight miles down the road from the dry swansong will be his fifth Winter Olympics appearance, adding to his World Cup slalom gold and victory in the 2013 Europa Cup Slalom Series, which made him the first British skier ever to achieve the Holmes' are at the other end of their careers, but simply trying to compete on a level playing field with athletes from the sport's European powerhouses has meant extraordinary sacrifices, with both working all the hours they can squeeze in during the summer simply to keep their heads above the competitive told BBC Radio Lancashire of their day-to-day struggle simply to scrimp together the funds to finance their bid to progress."Charlotte and I have both got part-time jobs over the summer," he said. "Charlotte is doing an awful lot of the work at the moment and I've had numerous different roles - plumbing, kitchen work etc."Over the summer we try to earn as much money to go into the winter, but we find it goes incredibly quickly." Charlotte revealed how, in a typical week, she crammed in 45 hours of toil in a kitchen alongside her 20 hours of physical training, a necessity for both if they are to hit next season in the right aims to be the first female racer to emulate Ryding, but says the odds are perpetually stacked against British hopefuls."We are 100% self-funded," she says. "Our parents are working full-time and 100% of their income goes towards skiing."It's a very expensive sport and we're spending hundreds of thousands of pounds on it. A pair of ski boots costs over a thousand pounds, a race entry is £50 plus the lift ticket, another £50."There are so many costs a normal person would never even think of. Even insurance and flights, training costs, race entries, any expenses, we have to cover."If you hear you're on a national team for your sport you would think 'Oh, they're in a training group, they have their coaches, they do everything with their national team', but that's not it at all."Since we were 13 and first raced for GB internationally, we have been training with private teams and everything is self-funded. "You have to go through an academy and find coaches, there is no national team pathway involved, in comparison to something like British Cycling, who have very good pathways at the minute."Robert added: "To take the next step we need support to do different things, to go to different race series and train more professionally over the summer because, realistically, doing 45 hours in a kitchen or plumbing isn't going to make me and Charlotte faster on snow. 'Superhuman' Ryding was an inspiration "We're always looking for some support to be able to move on to the next level. It's a very difficult task to keep improving with limited resources."Ryding has offered the pair advice and support, and they are spurred on by his example - someone who blazed a trail for British skiing by taking on, and occasionally beating, the Austrian, Italian, German and American stars who dominate the said: "We want to do the exact same. There's been no female World Cup winner that's from Great Britain, so I think that is something I'd really like to do, to be the first and do what he's done."He's worked so damned hard for so many years. He's been in the sport for over 20 years and it just shows how far hard work will go. We're not scared of hard work either."Robert still finds Ryding inspiring as he makes his own way on the slopes. He explained: "When I was a kid I used to idolise him and think he was some superhuman, skiing these incredibly difficult hills. "Now I've got to know him over these last few years, he's just a very down-to-earth guy and you would never think he's a top-level athlete."You can speak to him openly about the struggles and get advice. Without his journey and what he's achieved on his way to the top I don't think me and Charlotte would be here right now."
Independent Singapore
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Independent Singapore
Alpine skier Dave 'The Rocket' Ryding to retire at the end of the 2026 season
Known as Britain's most successful alpine skier, Dave 'The Rocket' Ryding announced that he will retire from the sport after the 2025-2026 season at the age of 38. The upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics will be his fifth and final Games. The athlete made history in 2022 by becoming the first British skier to clinch a World Cup gold in slalom. Moreover, he successfully claimed Britain's best men's World Championship finish earlier this year by finishing in sixth place. Ryding told BBC Sport : 'I'm committed to doing one more year all in and seeing what we can achieve…Everything feels right now to draw a line after the Olympics while my body's good. I'm still at the top of the sport and still able to compete with the best, I still feel I can go all in.' He added, 'I sit here with no niggles, no pains in my body, which is really rare in skiing… I don't want the legs to fall off; it's not fun if the legs fall off mid-season. So while I still can, I'll do all I can to be the best in the world.' Ryding's athletic performance throughout the years Throughout his sporting career, Dave Ryding has reached the World Cup podium seven times. This includes his historic gold in the Kitzbuhel slalom. After this historical moment, Ryding admitted that he 'never stopped believing, never stopped trying,' and this simply shows how determined and resilient he is despite all the challenges. The athlete's first World Cup podium was in Kitzbuhel in 2017, where he won silver. His latest medal was in Madonna di Campiglio in December 2023, where he won bronze. Furthermore, his best Olympic result was placing ninth at the PyeongChang 2018. With the upcoming Games, he believes that he can do so much better, now that he will be cheered on by his daughter, Nina. For his final season, Ryding will prepare with his British teammates, Billy Major and Laurie Taylor, the athletes who will continue the British skiing legacy that he achieved. In a social media post made by GB Snowsport, Dave Ryding shared a message about his last season. The caption stated: 'If you'd have told me at 23 that I'd still be doing this at nearly 40, I don't think I'd have quite believed you. But here we are—and after 15 incredible years on the World Cup circuit, seven podiums, one victory, and the honour of flying the flag for Great Britain, I've decided this will be my last season on the slopes.' 'I've never lost the determination to be the best skier I can be, and I still feel that fire burning inside me. To my family, coaches, sponsors, federation, and every single fan who's ever cheered me on—thank you for always having my back. It's been the privilege of a lifetime. Let's make this final push one to remember. See you out there. ⛷️💙' Netizens showered Dave with admiration and support in the comments, calling him 'an absolute legend and inspiration ❤️❤️' and praising his career with messages like 'What a career and what a sportsman 💙' and 'A true inspiration for the rest of British skiing!' Ryding's sporting history Ryding didn't grow up skiing on snow, and first tried the sport at the age of six on a dry slope in Lancashire. He didn't receive proper training until he was 13, and he just kept on racing on dry slopes into his early twenties. He earned his first World Cup points by the age of 26 as he started late in the top level of skiing.
ITV News
12-06-2025
- Sport
- ITV News
'I've loved every second': Great Britain's most successful alpine ski racer Dave Ryding to retire
Great Britain's most successful alpine ski racer Dave Ryding, has announced he will retire at the end of the 2025-26 season. The 38-year-old from Chorley, Lancashire, is the most decorated British Slalom skier of all time and made history in January 2022 by becoming the first British alpine skier to win World Cup gold thanks to victory in the Kitzbuhel slalom. He hopes to compete at the fifth Winter Olympics of his career in February next year at the Milan-Cortina Games in Italy. In a statement Dave said: 'Competing internationally, representing my country on the World Cup circuit, and going to four Olympic Games so far has been the privilege of a lifetime. "I've always said that I'd only carry on for as long as I think I can perform to my best level, and making this decision now frees me up to give one last push to try and go one step further over the next season." Ryding has been a regular on the World Cup circuit since 2009 and achieved seven podium places, including his landmark gold. The slalom specialist finished sixth in the 2025 Alpine World Championships – Britain's best men's result since 1934. 'It's been one hell of a journey, and I've loved every second of it,' he said. 'Now it's time to make this final season a special one.'
Leader Live
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Leader Live
Great Britain's most successful alpine ski racer Dave Ryding to retire
The 38-year-old made history in January 2022 by becoming the first British alpine skier to win World Cup gold thanks to victory in the Kitzbuhel slalom. He hopes to compete at the fifth Winter Olympics of his career in February next year at the Milan-Cortina Games in Italy. 'Competing internationally, representing my country on the World Cup circuit, and going to four Olympic Games so far has been the privilege of a lifetime,' Ryding said in a statement. A post shared by Dave Ryding (@dave_ryding) 'I've always said that I'd only carry on for as long as I think I can perform to my best level, and making this decision now frees me up to give one last push to try and go one step further over the next season.' Lancashire-born Ryding has been a regular on the World Cup circuit since 2009 and achieved seven podium places, including his landmark gold. The slalom specialist finished sixth in the 2025 Alpine World Championships – Britain's best men's result since 1934. 'It's been one hell of a journey, and I've loved every second of it,' he said. 'Now it's time to make this final season a special one.'
South Wales Guardian
12-06-2025
- Sport
- South Wales Guardian
Great Britain's most successful alpine ski racer Dave Ryding to retire
The 38-year-old made history in January 2022 by becoming the first British alpine skier to win World Cup gold thanks to victory in the Kitzbuhel slalom. He hopes to compete at the fifth Winter Olympics of his career in February next year at the Milan-Cortina Games in Italy. 'Competing internationally, representing my country on the World Cup circuit, and going to four Olympic Games so far has been the privilege of a lifetime,' Ryding said in a statement. A post shared by Dave Ryding (@dave_ryding) 'I've always said that I'd only carry on for as long as I think I can perform to my best level, and making this decision now frees me up to give one last push to try and go one step further over the next season.' Lancashire-born Ryding has been a regular on the World Cup circuit since 2009 and achieved seven podium places, including his landmark gold. The slalom specialist finished sixth in the 2025 Alpine World Championships – Britain's best men's result since 1934. 'It's been one hell of a journey, and I've loved every second of it,' he said. 'Now it's time to make this final season a special one.'
