Archie Atkinson

Archie Atkinson scored a dramatic silver in the men’s C4 4000m individual pursuit to give him his first Paralympic medal. A heartbreaking fall with just 250m to go saw Atkinson unable to finish the race despite leading by nearly a lap.

The youngest member of the Great British para cycling podium programme, Cheshire’s Archie Atkinson has made waves in his early forays into competitive cycling.

Following in the footsteps of legends, Atkinson’s very first experience of riding on a track came at ten years old, under the tutelage of multiple world and Olympic champion, Sir Chris Hoy. The experience inspired him but the idea of competing on two wheels did not feature in his future until a chance encounter with double Paralympic gold medallist Ben Watson while out on a ride with his Dad in 2021. Atkinson has cerebral palsy, a number of neurological conditions and is autistic. Through subsequent conversations with Watson, Atkinson realised he could be eligible for para cycling, and he was accepted onto the British Cycling Foundation Pathway following two days of power tests. Just under one year later, Atkinson was promoted to the world class performance programme.

Atkinson took part in the UCI Para-Cycling Road World Cup series, taking two bronze medals in the C4 time trials in both Ostend, Belgium, and Alabama, USA. Still aged just 18, it was another step on the road toward success at the very top level for Atkinson.

Archie was selected to ride the scratch race in his first UCI Para-Track World Championships at the multi-discipline Cycling Worlds in Glasgow in 2023, but suffered a bereavement just prior to the competition, as his close friend, American rider Magnus White, passed away shortly before the competition. Atkinson channelled his grief into his riding and was able to show his fighting spirit to win the race.. He won his first rainbow jersey, before heading out onto the roads of Dumfries and Galloway to tackle the C4 road race, in which he claimed a bronze medal.

Atkinson won the C4 individual pursuit at the 2024 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the claim the second rainbow jersey of his young career.

Selected Results

**Paris 2024 Paralympic Games ** Men’s C4 4000m Individual Pursuit - Silver

2024

UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

Gold, MC4 individual pursuit

2023

UCI Para-Track Cycling World Championships, Glasgow

Gold, MC4 scratch race

UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships, Dumfries & Galloway

Bronze, MC4 road race