ESTHER Wong was born into a cycling family and from more or less the moment she could reach the pedals she was on a bike.
Wong will represent Team NI in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and is relishing her first taste of a global multi-sport event.
“I started racing when I was six years old and my brother was racing, so was my dad, so I was just brought into it straight away,” recalled Wong.
“I just really enjoyed it, it was really fun, I was racing with a lot of the lads and I liked to try and win against them, at the time there wasn’t many girls, it was just me against these lads and I really enjoyed the competitive side of it.
“I think I was a pretty good six-year-old, it was probably my peak back then, winning all these little races.”
Wong was proficient in cyclo-cross but now solely concentrates on her track and road career.
“Cyclo-cross is kind of like mountain biking but on a bike that looks more like a road bike, it’s around a muddy field, there’s obstacle courses, you have to get off the bike, run with the bike sometimes., She explains: ”I started doing that a lot later, I was probably 16 when I first started taking it more seriously, I used to do it just as something to do in the winter because it’s a winter sport, but then I found I really enjoyed it and started doing that more, but with the three disciplines it’s kind of hard to balance it, so I’ve never had a season where I committed fully to it, but it’s a fun sport to do in the winter.”
It wasn’t long before the 20-year-old started progressing on the track and road: “I think as a junior I started to see good results, especially on the track, getting into these programs and getting more dialled into the team pursuit.
“The level just gets a lot harder and more professional, and I’m really enjoying this type of environment.
“It’s fun to race against all these different countries across the world, the top level.”
Wong explained the nuisances between the different disciplines she rides in.
“Road is a lot longer, about 3-4 hours would be a standard road race, and then track, probably 20 minutes, so yeah, there’s different types of strength, but I think they work really well hand in hand, because in road you also need the fast twitch and the strength at the end of a road race.
” I think most of my training I would just include some harder intervals, like into a longer ride, so still keeping the endurance for the road, which is important, but then including the hard effort so I can still keep the fast speed in my legs.”
Diet is also important for a cyclist competing at the top level.
“For an endurance athlete like me, it’s eating a lot of carbs and just making sure you fuel enough for the training sessions, which I find quite hard because the amount of calories I’m burning, it’s hard to keep up with that.
“Then before races, the carb loading, but then when I have easier days or easier weeks, I’ll eat less, lso, as a road cyclist, you still want to be light, to watch it and manage it, but still fuel well.”
Wong has recently switched allegiance from Great Britain to Ireland and qualifies for Team NI through her grandmother who hails from Coalisland, Co Tyrone.
“When I was younger, I always knew I wanted to represent Ireland and my grandma being Irish as well, it’s a path I’ve always wanted to take.
“Growing up in England, it was hard to do that and it’s easier as a younger rider to stay where I was. Then going out into U23 level, it was the right sort of time for me, I’m really enjoying it and the opportunities it’s provided.”
Wong just wants to absorb everything in and around her first Commonwealth Games.
“I’m quite a young rider., I’m only 20 years old, it’s a gaining experience, hopefully I can be strong enough to put out a good performance but I’m not expecting big medals, I hope to still be competitive within the other girls.
‘I’ve never done a competition like this before, hopefully I can learn from the other girls and take some advice, I’m excited to see what’s to come.”
