| Mark Colbourne | |
| Fullname: | Mark Colbourne |
| Birth Date: | 1969 11, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Tredegar, Wales |
| Discipline: | Track |
Mark Lee Colbourne[1] MBE (born 9 November 1969) is a former Welsh paralympic-cyclist, who competed for both Wales and Great Britain.
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 when forced into an emergency landing whilst paragliding.[3] [4]
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 3 km 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 1 km time trial.[2] [4]
He was selected as part of the cycling team for Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Paralympics. On 30 August 2012 Colbourne won a silver medal and Great Britain's first medal of the 2012 Paralympics, in the C1-3 1 km time trial.[6] On 31 August 2012 he won a gold medal in the C1 3 km individual pursuit after breaking the world record in both the qualification round and the final.[7] He is scheduled to compete in two road cycling events; the C1 road time trial, on 5 September; and the C1-3 road race on 6 September.[4] [8]
Colbourne was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to cycling.[9] In August 2013 Colbourne announced his retirement from para-cycling.[10]