Unwin credits partnership with Holl for latest para cycling success

Paralympic champion Sophie Unwin believes that her unwavering connection with pilot Jenny Holl was the key to cracking a brand-new world title.

The 31-year-old visually impaired rider and her pilot have been riding together since 2021 and have since soared to world, European and Paralympic titles together.

And despite a difficult start to her 2025 season due to illness, Unwin and Holl roared back onto the top step of the podium at the recent Para Cycling Track World Championships, setting a new world record to reclaim her women’s B individual pursuit title.

"For me, 2025 has been very up and down," she said. "I missed the early road racing in the season because I was ill which meant that I was on the back foot coming into the season.

"Road worlds went as well as they possibly could have done considering all of the above and distribution to training that I had.

"And then at track worlds, to win the pursuit for the first time racing 4km internationally. To go there and set a world record for gold, I couldn't really ask for anything better."

Despite reclaiming the individual pursuit world title, Unwin's victory also marked a first, with the women's event having switched from a three-kilometre to four-kilometre race for the first time this season.

It meant that gold was both a return to the podium and an inaugural title for the pair and Unwin believes that their success whittles down to their partnership on and off the bike.

"Leaning new stuff together and working out new ways has been fun this season but because we get on so well it has been pretty easy," she added.

"We're both pretty much on the same page on everything.

"We knew that the change to 4km would suit Jenny and I pretty well for the way that we rode the 3km.

"But that extra kilometre, we really felt it. A lot of people were talking about how we wouldn't even notice it but you really do, I can tell you now.

"It has meant that training this year has changed focus on bringing the road endurance we have into the track.

"We've been doing much longer efforts in track sessions than we have been doing before to try and top up that tolerance to that length."

Unwin and Holl will have the opportunity to defend their 2025 crown in Apeldoorn next season, focussing on the road as well as the track.

But next summer also sees a bump in the Unwin-Holl partnership, with the Commonwealth Games breaking up the pairing during competition.

Unwin, who is English, competed alongside Georgia Holt at the Birmingham 2022 Games, whilst Team Scotland's Holl piloted Libby Clegg in the velodrome.

The home nation change brings about unknowns for the pairing on the track, but also an opportunity to try something different and fun in Unwin's eyes.

"I'm hoping to do Commonwealth Games next year but it's a bit up in the air as to how I will do it and who with," she said. "That for me, would be such a fun event.

"The main angle next year is road and track worlds again, looking at the time trial and pursuit again as our main targets and defending some titles."

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