Alongside British cyclist Matthew Richardson in attempting to break a world record was 46-year-old para-cyclist William Bjergfelt. While Richardson aimed to break the flying 200m record, which he successfully did, Bjergfelt focused on the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Hour Record in the MC5 category.
As broken down by ParalympicsGB, the C1-5 categories are designed for athletes riding a standard bicycle who have a physical impairment that impacts the upper and/or lower limbs. C1 represents the most severe level of impairment, while C5 represents the least.
Bjergfelt holds a lengthy cycling resume filled with numerous triumphs. In 2021, he made history after becoming the first para-cyclist to compete in the celebrated Tour of Britain race, later followed by immense success in the UCI Para-cycling Road World Cup. He has accepted cycling challenges time and time again, but this particular undertaking was perhaps one of his greatest yet.
On Thursday, Bjergfelt showed up ready to make his world record attempt. The skilled athlete took off and managed to cover a shocking 51.471 kilometers, which was 3.902 kilometers further than Andrea Tarlao’s 2014 record.
“It’s amazing. It’s not quite sunk in yet really. I’ve wanted this for a really long time. Before I was a para-cyclist, I wanted to have a crack at a world record,” said Bjergfelt, according to a UCI press release.
“Every third lap I was getting an average split, so I was able to control my pace,” he told the organization. “My coach Ben Brown sets my best average efforts on my TT bike, so those efforts over the past 2.5 years have really played into what I did today, where I started steady, built into the effort, sustained it, and then got faster towards the end. And I think that’s the perfect way to do an hour.”
During his attempt, he noticed his supporters encouraging him to finish strong, which he states “started to hit home.” The weight of this achievement is heavy, as in 2015, he was in a horrific accident that resulted in a severe injury to his leg. Unwilling to give up his beloved sport, he returned to cycling and has been unstoppable.
Bjergfelt uses his experience as a way to inspire, encourage, and advocate for those around him. He is the prime example of using adversity as a form of fuel. What could have been a career-ending injury turned into something much more. Having set a new world record, it will be interesting to see what he focuses his energy on next.