Great Britain’s most decorated Olympian, track cyclist Sir Chris Hoy, officially retired at a news conference in Edinburgh Thursday.
Hoy was set to compete at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in his home country of Scotland, at the velodrome in Glasgow that bears his name, but decided to call it quits because he was still “good, but not good enough.”
“I feel I like have got every last ounce of effort and energy out of myself,” Hoy said. “I wouldn’t want to turn up there as a shadow of my former self.”
Hoy, 37, earned six gold medals during his Olympic career on the track, winning his last two in London to surpass legendary rower Steve Redgrave for the most gold by any British athlete. Hoy and fellow British cyclist Bradley Wiggins each own seven Olympic medals in all.
“I think it just dawned on me over time that I am satisfied, happy, content. There is no lingering doubt. I know I have done everything I can and it would be a mistake to go on.”
Hoy was Knighted in 2008 after becoming the first British athlete in a century to earn three gold medals at a single Olympics. And for helping turn Great Britain into a nation recognized for it’s excellence in cycling: Britons won seven of the ten track cycling golds in London, and 12 medals total in the sport.
“Just to see the legacy, not just for myself but for the whole of the sport - to see what we have achieved as a sport over the last 10, 15, 20 years. It’s a huge satisfaction to see the future of the sport flourishing.
“I am going to cycle for the rest of my life. And I hope to encourage other people to get into the sport and ride bikes, too.”