Mark Lee Colbourne[1]MBE (born 9 November 1969) is a former Welshparalympic-cyclist, who competed for both Wales and Great Britain.
Early life
Colbourne was born on 9 November 1969 in Tredegar, Monmouthshire, Wales.[2] He played volleyball at international level for Wales between 1990 and 1993.[2]
He broke his back in 2009 after falling 35 feet (11m) when forced into an emergency landing whilst paragliding.[3][4]
Cycling career
Following his accident Colbourne began cycling through Disability Sport Wales.[4] He competes in the C1 classification for riders on upright bikes with the most severe disability.[3] He trained with disabled cycling coach Neil Smith at the Newport Velodrome and made his first appearance in a track race in May 2010 at the Wales Grand Prix.[3]
In 2011 he won his first UCI Para-Cycling World Cup medals. He took bronze in the C1 time trail in Segovia, Spain at his debut at World Cup level. At the round in Baie-Comeau, Canada, he won the silver medal in the same event behind Juan Jose Mendez Fernandez of Spain.[5] His first World Championship medal was a silver at the 2011 UCI Para-Cycling Road World Championships held in Roskilde, Denmark.[2]
In 2012 Colbourne won his first world title, taking the gold medal in the C1 3km individual pursuit at the 2012 UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships in Los Angeles, United States. At the same Championships he won the silver medal in the C1 1km time trial.[2][4]
A gold postbox outside Tredegar post office to commemorate the gold medal Colbourne won at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London
