Cycling: King stirred to keep going

Taupo track cyclist Jaymie King (front) in action at the Oceania Track Championships in Adelaide. Photo / Cameleon Photography

A promising Taupo cyclist has returned from her first international competition with her sights set on going as far as she can in the sport.

Jaymie King, 17, who is finishing her last year at Taupo-nui-a-Tia College, originally planned to head to university to begin a medical degree in 2015, but the talented young sportswoman now plans to put her studies on hold temporarily while she pursues a place in the New Zealand track cycling team.

King's decision follows a strong showing at the Oceania Track Championships in Adelaide earlier this month where she competed in three under-19 events and one elite teams event. She brought home a fourth place in the keirin (eight laps of 250m), fifth places in the 500m time trial and the sprints, and a sixth in the elite team sprints event.

King said while some of the times she posted were slower than times she'd previously recorded, the competition was a great experience.

"It was pretty motivating - I came back inspired," she said.

With NCEA exams ahead King is focused on her academic goals for now, but once those are completed she's set her sights on the national track cycling championships in Cambridge in February, and from there she'd like to be picked for the New Zealand team to compete in Kazakhstan in August next year.

While it was undoubtedly a tough decision to put her studies on hold next year while she pursues her cycling goals, King said she had realised she couldn't do both. In 2015 she would base herself in Cambridge and focus on being selected for the New Zealand team.

King was part of a 30-strong New Zealand squad that included world champion sprint team members Eddie Dawkins, Sam Webster and Ethan Mitchell.