David Edwards (cyclist)


David Edwards is an Australian cyclist, who has found sporting success both individually and in tandem cycling. He piloted Kieran Modra in tandem cycling. He made his Paralympic debut at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

Personal

Edwards was born in Alice Springs, NT on 21 April 1993. He grew up in Townsville and Tolga, QLD and attended Atherton State High School. He is a graduate of Griffith University, having studied and completed a Bachelor of Psychological Science. Edwards currently cycles for Tablelands cycle sports and is coached by Nick Formosa. He also has two older sisters and two younger half brothers.

Career

Edwards started competing in 2006 and first competed for Australia in 2010.

Individual

Edwards first competed in 2010 at Liege – La Gleize and Rothays Regio – Tour International and before gaining his first international podium finish during the 2011 U19 UCI World Cycling Championships in Copenhagen. He has since competed in Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhon's Cup Tour of Thailand, Oceania Continental Championships and won the 2015 U23 Oceania Continental Championship road race. In 2013, Edwards was invited to join the French cycling team. He resided in Chambery, France during his time with AGR2.

Pilot

Serving as a sighted pilot for Modra, the pair won multiple events. These events include; the 2016 Australian para-cycling Tandem National Championships with a winning time of 4mins 17.929secs alongside Gold in the 2016 Para-Cycling Track World Championship in Tandem 4 km Pursuit with a time of 4min 12.324secs. The pair made their Paralympic debut at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games. At the Games, they won a bronze medal in the Men's Road Time Trial B.

Charity work

In November 2016, Edwards embarked upon and completed a 10 day cycle from Brisbane to his childhood town of Atherton, a journey of 2000 km. He did this for the specific purpose of "raising awareness and funds around mental health and suicide prevention," and raised money from this for the charity Beyond Blue. During his journey up the Queensland coast, Edwards met up with and rode with several local cycling clubs.