Torquay world champion bound for Glasgow

JUST four years after taking up competitive paracycling, Torquay’s Erin Rowell is heading to her first Commonwealth Games.

The 43-year-old reigning world champion will compete in the women’s track C4-5 category in Glasgow next month.

She described her selection on the 25-strong Australian cycling team as the highlight of her sporting career.

“I’m super excited,” Rowell said.

“I set myself that goal to qualify and put in the hard work over the course of a few years and now it’s paid off.

“As a kid I dreamed of making the Olympics or Commonwealth Games for athletics, but here I am now at 43 making it for paracycling. I’m stoked.”

Rowell said the Commonwealth Games offered a unique opportunity for cyclists and paracyclists to come together as one team.

“The Commonwealth Games is a great experience, and like the Worlds, it’s the only time both paracyclists and cyclists are together in the one place,” she said.

“To have everyone there, cheering each other on will be amazing.”

Rowell first took up cycling as part of her rehabilitation following a serious car accident 15 years ago.

She later earned a place in AusCycling’s Talent ID program in 2022 and has been competing in paracycling ever since.

Rowell will enter the Games in strong form after a breakthrough 2025 season on the international stage.

At the 2025 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in Rio, she claimed her maiden world title in the C4 women’s sprint.

She also won gold in the mixed C1-5 team sprint alongside Gordon Allan, Michael Shippley and Korey Boddington.

“I am confident where I am,” she said. “I’ve got a fantastic team around me at the Victorian Institute of Sport and at home in Torquay.

“I feel I am excelling under a new coach, a great group of physios and pyschologists, and the support services available to me.”

The 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow will run from 23 July to 2 August.