{"id":331669,"date":"2025-12-23T14:39:15","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T14:39:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/331669\/"},"modified":"2025-12-23T14:39:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T14:39:15","slug":"im-probably-just-a-bit-of-a-sufferer-able-to-dig-deep-robyn-clay-cycling-weeklys-domestic-rider-of-the-year-is-only-just-getting-started","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/331669\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I\u2019m probably just a bit of a sufferer, able to dig deep’ \u2013 Robyn Clay, Cycling Weekly’s domestic rider of the year, is only just getting started"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robyn Clay is Cycling Weekly’s domestic rider of 2025. This feature originally appeared in Cycling Weekly magazine on 4th December 2025. Subscribe now<\/a> and never miss an issue.<\/p>\n

Robyn Clay had a lot of success in 2025. There were five race wins, both the National Road and National Circuit Series<\/a>, and the inaugural Rapha Super-League too \u2013 all by a 21-year-old who had only started racing at elite level a couple of years previously. It was not hard to select our domestic rider of the season.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What meant most to Clay, though, was not one of the victories or titles. Intriguingly. It was her performance in the under-23 individual time trial at the British National Championships in June, where she finished second, 51 seconds behind the winner, Millie Couzens<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt I couldn\u2019t have executed it any better,\u201d Clay told Cycling Weekly last month. \u201cI just timed it perfectly with my form, coming after a couple of stage races that had got me into really good shape. I managed to follow the plan exactly, to the extent that the result didn’t really matter, as I couldn\u2019t have gone any faster.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Robyn\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: SWpix.com)<\/p>\n

That comment might give some insight into the latest female star to emerge from the British racing scene. The stand-out year has seen Clay transfer from Continental team DAS-Hutchinson to Women\u2019s WorldTour squad Picnic PostNL<\/a>. The 22-year-old modestly attributes her winning formula not to talent alone, but also fortune. \u201c<\/p>\n

I think I was really lucky,\u201d she said. \u201cEven being injured at the start of the season was a blessing in disguise, because it forced me to not start too early, and then I was ready at the right time. I didn\u2019t really have any bad crashes, and no illness, which disturbs your flow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Born into biking<\/p>\n

The rider from Otley, Yorkshire, comes from a cycling family, so her genes are clearly working for her \u2013 her dad is 1998 Commonwealth Games silver medallist Jonny Clay<\/a>, and her mum is former elite rider Danielle Davis.<\/p>\n

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n

Further inspiration came from the Tour de France<\/a>\u2019s visit to Yorkshire<\/a> when Clay was 10, and the World Championships arriving in Harrogate when she was 15. Perhaps surprisingly, she did not fully commit to life on two wheels until the pandemic.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Robyn\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: SWpix.com)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s always been in my life,\u201d she explained. \u201cWhen I was quite young, I did a bit of grasstrack. Both my parents were professionals, so it was always going to be a part of my life, but I was mostly focused on football, and I hardly rode my bike until I was 16. But during Covid, I started riding quite a lot more and decided I wanted to take it a bit more seriously, so I quit football.\u201d<\/p>\n

It has been a steep trajectory for Clay, from her local Otley Race Team to Picnic PostNL, via Pro-Noctis and DAS-Hutchinson, in just five seasons. It makes her success all the more impressive; pre-pandemic, she was still a footballer practising against a \u201cbrick wall at the back\u201d, as she puts it.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

The breakout season did not come from nowhere, though. There were many signs, not least victory at the Curlew Cup last year, the final race of the National Road Series. Now, just one year later, Clay holds both series titles after an incredibly consistent 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first two rounds, my mindset was just to do what I could,\u201d she said. \u201cI got two solid results, and that put me into the lead; then, at Lincoln, I was still in the lead, so I thought I might as well try and hold on to it\u2026 I knew if I was consistent, and I showed up to every race, and I could be in the running for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

This success has not come without jeopardy. Last year she suffered an injury so serious it could have completely derailed her career. A crash in Belgium left her with four broken vertebrae \u2013 but she was back on the bike within six weeks. \u201cIt could have been much worse,\u201d she pointed out. That she was so quickly back in the bunch, racing on the margins once more is further testament to her grit and courage.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Robyn\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: SWpix.com)<\/p>\n

Into the big leagues<\/p>\n

Away from the National A races, Clay grasped opportunities to ride bigger events, with DAS taking part in the Amstel Gold Race and the Tour of Britain Women<\/a>. She DNF\u2019d at the former, after spending time in the break, while she came ninth in the youth classification at the ToB.<\/p>\n

\u201cTurning up [at Amstel Gold], getting a tap from Demi Vollering<\/a> because she wants to move up, then looking right and seeing Marianne Vos \u2013 it\u2019s crazy,\u201d she said of her experiences. \u201cAt the Tour of Britain, spending more time with pros like Lizzie Deignan<\/a> was a dream. I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll eventually get used to it, but it\u2019ll take a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clay is still young \u2013 she turned 22 in October \u2013 and is still working out who she is on the bike, a development process her new team will be keen to nurture.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can sprint fairly well, so if there’s a reduced bunch, I’d fancy my chances, but not in a pure bunch sprint,\u201d she explained, before turning to her climbing aptitude. \u201cI can usually hang on, but I\u2019m definitely not a climber. I guess I\u2019m fairly punchy, and suited to time trialling as well \u2013 I\u2019m probably just a bit of a sufferer, able to dig deep.\u201d<\/p>\n

This skillset seems well matched to the Classics, a hypothesis that might get tested sooner rather than later. Along with Cat Ferguson<\/a>, Zoe B\u00e4ckstedt<\/a> and Pfeiffer Georgi<\/a>, among others, there is a promising new generation of British one-day racers coming through.<\/p>\n

Having completed the domestic scene, Clay is fixing on new targets for 2026, which is set to be a big learning opportunity. But don\u2019t expect her to vanish into the peloton, because Robyn Clay is only getting started.<\/p>\n

Explore More<\/p>\n


\nTeam Picnic PostNL
\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Robyn Clay is Cycling Weekly’s domestic rider of 2025. This feature originally appeared in Cycling Weekly magazine on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":331670,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-331669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=331669"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331669\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/331670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=331669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=331669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=331669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}