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She may be small in stature, but when she’s on her bike Victoria native Sarah Van Dam is a force.
Getting her start at the Tripleshot Cycling Club in B.C.’s capital, she’s now based in Europe racing alongside the best female cyclists in the world.
With so much track behind her, Van Dam has come a long way.
“When I first started cycling I was like, ‘Oh, I’m not sure I want to compete,” she says. “And then once I got into it, it was like, ‘Woah!’”
Van Dam was only 11 when she caught the cycling bug.
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“It was called Bike Jam and it was a middle school event and they introduced you to all the disciplines,” she says.
She didn’t know it at the time, but the school bike league was organized by the Tripleshot Cycling Club. It’s a club that Van Dam would soon belong to.
“I kinda go, ‘Phew, we didn’t screw her up,’ you know? And she’s gone on to do a lot of things with that kind of an intro,” says Tripleshot coach Lister Farrar.
Despite Farrar’s concerns, it appears Tripleshot set up Van Dam for success. Last month, the cyclist announced she had signed onto a three-year professional cycling contract with Team Visma | Lease a Bike.
“Its a world tour cycling team and it’s, I would say, one of the biggest teams there is,” says Van Dam.
With a 2024 Olympic appearance and a successful switch from track to road racing, Van Dam is pursuing an opportunity to earn a living by doing what she loves.
But until recently, that hasn’t been a possibility for women.
“Early on I dreamed of being at the top, racing at the highest level, but at that time there wasn’t a Tour de France women,” she says.
“Where we are now, you’re seeing more quality between the men and the women, so yeah now it’s possible to do this full time.”
Van Dam is one of only a very few number of cyclists from Vancouver Island to reach this level, and she’s very careful to credit the support network that’s been behind her every pedal of the way, including her old club, Tripleshot.
“This is the reason I’m here now, honestly,” she says. “I started at age 11 and the emphasis was on having fun and that is the key.”
Farrar remembers Van Dam’s strong start to her cycling career as well.
“She was very determined early on,” he says. “So we have a game we play called survivor where they ride slowly on grass and try to make other riders put their foot down, and Sarah won her very first one at age 11 against 15 year old boys.”
Although Van Dam is only 23, she’s already committed to passing on her legacy of success, spending hours with young cyclists.
“I remember when I was young and just riding in the club seeing some Red Truck [Racing] riders come out and practice with the kids,” she says.
“I try and ride with younger kids and inspire them as much as possible, because it was so instrumental and inspiring to me that I want to give back to the younger generation as well.”
Farrar says that sends an important message to young riders.
“It’s even more important for girls in sport to have female role models that they can look to and go, ‘She’s just like us,’ you know? We can do what she’s doing,” says Farrar.
Van Dam is back in Europe where she’ll be based for the season, which many of her coaches, clubmates, support team and fans will be watching.
“I spend a lot of time stopping the TV and looking for Sarah in the groups,” says Farrar.
Read more Inspiring Island Women stories here.
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