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<\/p>\nQueensland\u00a0Para-cyclist\u00a0Korey Boddington\u00a0has been awarded the most prestigious prize in Australian cycling, winning the\u00a0Sir Hubert Opperman Trophy\u00a0for the 2025 Australian Cyclist of the Year.<\/p>\n
The four-time world champion was presented with the\u00a0Oppy Medal\u00a0at the AusCycling Awards ceremony in Brisbane\u00a0on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Boddington, 30, achieved outstanding success at the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Rio de Janeiro in October. He won the men\u2019s C3\u00a0world titles in three individual events\u00a0\u2013 the sprint, 1km time trial and elimination race \u2013 before producing a crucial performance in third wheel to clinch victory for the ARA Australian Cycling Team in the mixed C1-5 team sprint.<\/p>\n
He comprehensively\u00a0broke two world records\u00a0in the process: the flying 200m and the 1km time trial.<\/p>\n
Boddington, who grew up on the Sunshine Coast and represents the University of Queensland Cycle Club, also won five Oceania titles and four national titles in 2025.<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s accolade is the latest in Boddington\u2019s meteoric rise over the last two years.<\/p>\n
At the age of 11, Boddington was hit by a van, suffering serious injuries including nerve damage to his right arm. At age 15, a severe motocross accident left him with an acquired brain injury.\u00a0He began track cycling in early 2023, won a Paralympic gold medal in 2024, and now joins the likes of Anna Meares and Cadel Evans on an exclusive honour roll.<\/p>\n
In his acceptance speech, Boddington said it hadn\u2019t been difficult to stay motivated after the highs of Paris 2024.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just want to be as fast as I can be. I\u2019ve got this crazy dream,\u00a0I want to go under a minute [in the 1km time trial] and under 10 seconds in the 200. I think, if I keep chasing those\u00a0goals, we can kick a lot of goals along the way. Why not see what\u2019s possible?\u201d he said, before going on to thank his supporters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe QAS have just been phenomenal in my success. In everything, they\u2019ve supported me. David Betts \u2013 anyone that\u2019s seen the film [Changing Track], there was point in time where they sat me down and said, \u2018Paris is probably a bit too big to plan for, so we\u2019ll look towards LA, but you\u2019ve got potential.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my cocky head, I kind of went, \u2018yeah alright mate, watch this.\u2019 And I went to Paris and won.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy fianc\u00e9e, she\u2019s studying medicine, she\u2019s a big inspiration. She\u2019s taken a lot of sacrifices in our relationship and makes me want to go hard and make it worthwhile.<\/p>\n
\u201cAusCycling supported from day one. Haven\u2019t blinked an eye.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy favourite part of Paris last year was coming back to Australia and going to the welcome home ceremonies. You realise the results are bloody awesome, but seeing how sport brings the whole community together, getting behind the Aussies, that\u2019s what it\u2019s all about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marne Fechner, Chief Executive Office of AusCycling, congratulated the winners and finalists of the AusCycling Awards.<\/p>\n
\u201cThroughout this year, Australia\u2019s cyclists and riders have shown the discipline, perseverance and strength of character it takes to succeed on our sport\u2019s biggest stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cKorey\u2019s performances on the track, highlighted by his four World Championship gold medals, have been nothing short of outstanding. Just as importantly, Korey\u2019s story of determination \u2013 learning to walk and talk again after his life-changing injuries, then dedicating himself to his Paralympic dream \u2013 challenges our assumptions about what we can all achieve.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo become the Australian Cyclist of the Year less than two years since becoming competitive cycling \u2013 that is a remarkable achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Boddington becomes\u00a0only the second\u00a0Para-cyclist to win the Oppy, two years after Amanda Reid achieved the feat in 2023.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Credit-SWPix-DSC_6504-2000x1333.jpg\")
Picture by Simon Wilkinson\/SWpix.com \u2013 19\/10\/2025 \u2013 Cycling \u2013 2025 UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships \u2013 Rio Olympic Velodrome, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil \u2013 Mixed C1-5 750 m Team Sprint Final for Gold \u2013 Korey Boddington (Australia) wins the Mixed C1-5 750 m Team Sprint World Championship<\/p>\n
\u201cFor two\u00a0Para-cyclists to win the Oppy in the last three years reflects the strength and depth of Australian\u00a0Para-cycling,\u201d Fechner said. \u201cIt\u2019s a testament to the world-leading staff and systems we have in place to support our athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other Para-cyclists recognised for their achievements on Australian cycling\u2019s night of nights included Victorian rising star Tahlia Clayton-Goodie, who won Track Para-athlete of the Year alongside Boddington, who won on the Male award on the Track.<\/p>\n
On the road, Paralympic medallists Darren Hicks (Male) and Lauren Parker (Female) were awarded the Athlete of the Year prizes for their outstanding years on the Road Para-Cycling international circuit.<\/p>\n
The Sir Hubert Opperman Trophy, named after the legendary cyclist of the 1920s and 30s, was first awarded to Russell Mockridge in 1958.<\/p>\n
Wednesday\u2019s ceremony marks the first time AusCycling has hosted its Awards in person since its formation in 2020. Alongside the award winners, 12 longstanding contributors to cycling were inducted into the AusCycling Hall of Fame, including veteran race promoters John Trevorrow and Phill Bates.<\/p>\n
Image Credit to AusCycling.<\/p>\n
By AusCycling.<\/p>\n
Published 4 December, 2025.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Queensland\u00a0Para-cyclist\u00a0Korey Boddington\u00a0has been awarded the most prestigious prize in Australian cycling, winning the\u00a0Sir Hubert Opperman Trophy\u00a0for the 2025…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":326089,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-326088","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=326088"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326088\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/326089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=326088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=326088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=326088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}