Elinor Barker has called an early end to her 2025 season after announcing that she is expecting her second child.
Announcing the news on social media, the 30-year-old from Wales said: "Raced my last race of 2025 today at Nationals TT, but for the happiest reason, as we're expecting our second baby in December.
"Extremely lucky once again to have full support from @unoxteam and @britishcycling and to be surrounded by so many experts."
She added: "Ps. If you're trying to hide a pregnancy at work, try to pick a job that doesn't require wearing skintight Lycra every day."
Barker, who was the first Welsh woman to win four Olympic medals, finished 16th in the recent British National Road Championships in Ceredigion. She’ll miss the Women’s Road World Championships, which take place in September.
The Cardiff-born cyclist is married to fellow wheeler Casper von Folsach and together they have a son, Nico, born betweenthe Olympics at Tokyo and Paris in which Barker both competed.
Barker is an advocate for women in sport and previously revealed her battles with endometriosis.
Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other places and can cause serious pain. It is a condition known to be under-diagnosed despite it affectin nearly 1 in 10 women, with the worldwide average time of diagnosis close to seven years.
"I was waiting for a diagnosis and I was lucky," she told BBC Radio Wales in 2024.
"The average diagnosis is about seven years and it took me about three to four years from my first appointment to actually having surgery and starting to find some solutions.
"One of the beautiful things of getting older is I now know my body better than I ever have done before. I know how to cope in a variety of different situations and get the best out of myself."
