Rachel Atherton Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Rachel Atherton

Rachel Atherton in August 2008

Personal information

Full name

Rachel Laura Atherton

Nickname

Waynehead

Born

6 December 1987 (age 37)
Salisbury, England, United Kingdom

Height

1.70 m

Weight

65 kg

Team information

Current team

Atherton Racing

Discipline

BMX & MTB

Role

Rider

Rider type

Major wins

DH World Champion (x5)
DH World Cup (x6 overall, 40 rounds)
DH European Champion
DH National Champion (x6)
DH Junior World Champion
DH Junior European Champion

Rachel Laura Atherton (born 6 December 1987) is a famous British professional downhill mountain bike racer. She is known for winning many UCI World Championship titles.

Rachel started riding BMX bikes when she was 8 years old. She then began mountain biking at age 11. In 2005, she was named Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year. She also won BBC Midlands Junior Sportswoman of the Year. Later, in 2008, she became BBC Midlands Sportswoman of the Year. A video of Rachel passing 91 competitors in just five minutes during a race became very popular online in 2015.

Rachel's Racing Journey
- World Championship Wins
- Setting New Records
Life Outside of Racing
Major Achievements
Images for kids
See also

Rachel's Racing Journey

Rachel Atherton raced for the Animal Commençal team for five years, starting in 2007. Her brothers, Dan Atherton and Gee Atherton, also raced with her. In 2012, Rachel and her brothers joined GT Bicycles. Later, in 2015, they signed with Trek Bicycle Corporation to race as Trek Atherton Racing.

World Championship Wins

In June 2008, Rachel made history. She became the first British woman to win the Elite UCI Downhill World Championship. She beat the second-place rider, Sabrina Jonnier, by a big margin of almost 12 seconds.

Rachel had an accident in January 2009. She was hit by a pickup truck while training in Santa Cruz, California. She hurt her shoulder badly, which meant she couldn't race for the rest of 2009. This included missing the World Championships.

In September 2012, Rachel won the final World Cup race in Norway. This victory helped her win the overall World Cup title for the season. She won 5 out of the 6 races she entered that year.

Setting New Records

In June 2016, Rachel set an amazing record. She became the first woman to win 10 World Cup races in a row. This broke the previous record held by Anne-Caroline Chausson. Later that same year, she did something even more incredible. She won every single round of the World Cup season, which had never been done before.

In 2019, Rachel got another injury. She hurt her Achilles tendon during practice. This injury meant she had to take a long break. She missed the entire 2020 racing season while she recovered.

Rachel made a fantastic return to racing in 2023. She competed at the UCI Downhill World Cup in Lenzerheide and won first place!

Life Outside of Racing

Rachel keeps her special rainbow jerseys in a birdcage. These jerseys are what world champions wear. She says she likes to "take them out, touch them and remember those races."

Rachel became a mom on August 4, 2021, when she gave birth to her daughter.

Major Achievements

2002
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH) – Youth
2004
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
- 2nd UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH) – Junior
2005
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH) – Junior
- 1st European Mountain Bike Championships (DH) - Junior
2006
- 1st European Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
- 1st Lisboa Downtown Championships
- 3rd Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
- 3rd UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
2007
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH), Round 5 (Maribor, Slovenia)
- 2nd UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
2008
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2010
- UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
  - 1st Round 1 (Maribor, Slovenia)
  - 1st Round 6 (Windham, United States)
2011
- 2nd UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 3rd Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2012
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2013
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2014
- 2nd UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 2nd Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2015
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2016
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships (DH)
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2017
- 1st British National Mountain Biking Championships (DH)
2018
- 1st UCI Mountain Bike World Championships (DH)
- 1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2019
- UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
  - 1st Round 2 (Fort William, Scotland)
  - 1st Round 4 (Vallnord, Andorra)
2023
- UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
  - 1st Round 1 (Lenzerheide, Switzerland)