2008: Olympic and World Success
Cooke joined Team Halfords Bikehut for 2008. Her first victory of 2008 was the Tour de l'Aude, taking the first stage and finishing fourth overall. On 28 June, Cooke won her ninth national road race champion title, and her eighth consecutive win.
Cooke represented Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics in the Women's Road Race where she won the gold on 10 August 2008, the 200th gold for Great Britain in the Modern Olympic Games. and the first Road Race Gold Medal for Great Britain in this discipline.
She became the first cyclist, male or female, to become the road race World Champion and Olympic gold medalist in the same year. An eventful race in Varese, Italy lasted 3 hours 42 minutes and 11 seconds, culminating in a sprint beating Marianne Vos in to 2nd place and Judith Arndt in 3rd. She credited her team mates for their work, pulling back the 12-rider break with 1 lap to go, putting Cooke back in contention.
Cooke's book, Cycle for life was published in October 2008 by Kyle Cathie (ISBN 9781856267564). The book combines her passion and enthusiasm for cycling, together with her knowledge, proficiency and experience. It is aimed at cyclists at all levels, with expert advice on everything from getting started to turning competitive, covering commuting, racing and riding with friends.
Read more about this topic: Nicole Cooke
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