Task 2
Questions 13-18
Read the article about Bradley Wiele. For questions 13-18, choose the correct answer
(A, B, C or D). Mark your answer on the answer sheet.
Bradley Wiele – champion cyclist
Bradley Wiele says he was born to be a cyclist. Even before he could walk, he was sitting on a bike with his dad, who was a cycling enthusiast. He hung out with friends who had bikes and got rides on their handlebars. Then he secretly borrowed his brother’s bike when he was away at school and, after a few crashes, he was on his way and could ride alongside his brother. Soon after, he was given a bike of his own. From then on, there was no stopping him.
On two wheels, Bradley felt he could go anywhere he wanted. He was no longer restricted to the street where he lived. He soon knew every street in his Manchester neighbourhood and even dared to cross the busy main road to neighbouring parts of the city. He was cycling the streets practically all his free time, pedalling as fast as the city traffic would allow. His parents became so worried about him that they enrolled him in the Dynamo Cycling Club at Manchester Velodrome.
The head coach at Dynamo remembers when he first saw Bradley on the track. “I knew he’d be good as soon as I saw him cycling round the track. He had the perfect build for a long-distance cyclist and you could tell straightaway that this enthusiastic young lad was special. He proved to have a great work ethic and the strong commitment to get to the top.”
At age 12, Bradley won his age group at the London Youth Games. He won the National Junior Pursuit title aged 17. When he was 20, he met cycling coach Will Broad, who convinced him to give up his job in a telecom warehouse and join his professional road cycling team. “I was being paid for what I love doing,” he said. The change to being in a professional team meant being on the road or in the gym full-time. It was tough and demanding to prepare for the Flèche du Sud event. But he had opted to learn from Broad, one of the best coaches in the country, and improve his technique. “It was a great decision,” said Bradley. “Who could have imagined I’d end up on the podium of the Tour de France and on the front pages?”
But the 2011 Tour was a disaster for Bradley. While among the leaders, he crashed out of the Tour on stage 7 with a broken collarbone. “It happened in a flash,” he said. “A spectator just appeared out of nowhere by the roadside and I overreacted and veered away from him and the rider behind me crashed into me. I’ve only got myself to blame. It was my fourth attempt at the Tour and I felt I was destined never to win it.”
Coach Broad said that the injury was “obviously devastating” for the team. “I had failed at the attempt to win the Tour,” said Bradley, “and I had been going well up to that point. When I found myself lying on the road unable to move my arm, I got really angry and I was determined to come back next year and win the Tour. It’s important not to let it get you down.”
Bradley went on to come third in the 2011 Vuelta a España, win the 2012 Tour de Romandie and stand on the winner’s podium wearing the yellow jersey of the 2012 Tour de France.
Bradley learned how to cycle
As a kid, Bradley loved cycling because
The Cycling Club head coach noticed Bradley because of his
Bradley joined the professional cycling team
Bradley says his accident in the 2011 Tour de France was
How did he react to being forced out of the 2011 Tour?