It’s been two years since Olympic cycling champion Sir Chris Hoy received the devastating news that he had cancer.
The sporting icon had sought medical advice after experiencing discomfort in his shoulder and ribs, initially putting it down to pushing himself too hard at the gym. When the pain continued, he booked an appointment in September 2023 and had a scan, only to be stunned by the discovery of a tumour.
Calling it the “biggest shock of my life”, Hoy was floored by the crushing diagnosis, telling the BBC: “I remember the feeling of just absolute horror and shock. I just basically walked back in a daze. I couldn’t believe the news and I was just trying to process it, I don’t remember walking. I just remember sort of halfway home thinking ‘where am I?’ And then I was thinking ‘how am I going to tell [my wife] Sarra? What am I going to say?'”.
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In a heartbreaking twist, Hoy and his family’s world was turned upside down weeks later when further scans revealed primary cancer in his prostate, which had spread to his bones. Tumours were discovered in his shoulder, pelvis, hip, spine and rib, with his condition terminal and medics telling him he had “two to four” years left to live.
Just 47 when he received the shattering news, the six-time Olympic gold medallist has since disclosed in his autobiography that the diagnosis left him feeling “completely numb” and “nauseous”, remembering how he felt “green in the face” upon discovering his cancer was terminal. “I can’t form words or even thoughts to ask questions, but I am vaguely aware of Sarra doing that while I sit there,” he recalled, reports the Mirror.
“The noise is distant, the words totally indiscernible.”
He revealed that the diagnosis had completely taken him by surprise, given he was “still at the peak of fitness, eating well, never smoked and never done drugs”. As Hoy grappled with the shocking news, his wife Sarra was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis around the same time, plunging him into a “living nightmare” as he faced the daunting task of breaking the news to his two young children, Chloe and Callum.
“That was the first thought in my head,” he confessed to the BBC. “How on earth are we going to tell the kids? It’s just this absolute horror, it is a waking nightmare. We just tried to be positive and tried to say do you know what, this is what we’re doing and you can help because when I’m not feeling well, you can come and give me cuddles, you can be supportive, you can be happy, you can be kind to each other.”
Hoy was diagnosed with cancer two years ago -Credit:PA
Hoy was left with a spinal fracture due to the spread of tumours
However, what Hoy has accomplished in the two years since his initial diagnosis is nothing short of remarkable. Despite dealing with the unimaginable, the Team GB icon has dedicated his time and energy to raising awareness of prostate cancer and fundraising for cancer charities.
Since revealing his diagnosis publicly, he has contributed to a remarkable surge in men seeking advice about the condition, with the NHS now identifying more men with prostate cancer at earlier stages than ever before. Furthermore, his fundraising cycling challenge Tour de 4 has generated more than double its £1 million target for cancer charities throughout the UK.
Regarding his own wellbeing, Hoy offered a brief update on living with terminal cancer during a BBC Breakfast appearance in early September, informing presenter Charlie Stayt: “I’m doing pretty well, thanks. Everything is stable at the moment, I had a bit of radiotherapy a few weeks ago. Feeling alright! Just getting on with it.”
Whilst he continues to receive “constant treatment”, Hoy says his condition is no longer the initial thought on his mind each morning. Earlier this year, he informed Sky Sports News that he had reached “a bit of a stability stage” and is presently “appreciating life more than ever”.
“I’m doing well,” he said in May. “It feels like I’ve entered a bit of a stability stage at the moment and I’m feeling good, exercising, riding a bike, busy. Most importantly cancer’s not the first thing I think about in the morning when I wake up and it’s not the last thing I think about when I go to bed at night. I think we’ve got into a rhythm now where it’s part of our lives and we manage that and crack on.
“It feels like it’s been one of the busiest periods of my life, the last few months, just doing everything: fun stuff, family stuff, work, travel. I feel good. I’m on constant medications, constant treatment, but it’s not interfering too much with my life and the most important thing is it’s working, so I’m stable at the moment, everything’s good. Making hay while the sun shines.
“I can’t believe the position I’m in now compared to 18 months ago,” Hoy added. “I never imagined I’d be able to get to this point where I’m actually living life. And not just living life, but actually appreciating it more than ever and able to enjoy the little things. It’s not just about doing bucket-list stuff and doing massive things, it’s about appreciating the daily, mundane fun of life.”
Despite Hoy’s remarkably upbeat approach to battling cancer, he has also revealed the anguish he has endured, disclosing on Gabby Logan’s podcast The Mid Point that the spread of tumours had caused a spinal fracture.
This prompted medics to warn him against picking up his young daughter, leaving him devastated.
“When I had the first diagnosis and scans, some of the secondary tumours in my spine had actually burrowed into the bone so badly it had fractured,” Hoy shared. “So I had a fractured vertebrae.
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“When they saw it on the scan they were like, ‘We’re going to have to be really careful here, you can’t do any lifting, you can’t pick up your kids, you can’t do anything. Being told not to be able to pick up your six-year-old daughter, that was like, right, this is really impacting my life”.
“I had some injections,” he continued. “They basically drill into your vertebrae, squirt this cement material in and it sets and it fuses and it makes the vertebrae as good as new again. So I’m back to lifting weights again. The thought of not being able to pick up your child, the thought of that not being a possibility was horrendous. For now I’m doing OK.”