50 cycling legends, including UK Sport's Director of Performance Peter Keen, were inducted into the first British Cycling Hall of Fame on Saturday 20 February at the organisation’s 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner.
Peter Keen OBE was a talented junior international cyclist (national champion and record holder over 10 miles) who began coaching from the age of 22 and was first appointed national cycling coach aged 25. Keen coached elite women and men to nine world records and gold medals at Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European Championships, and over 50 national titles. His most high profile athlete was Chris Boardman MBE, whom he coached from age 18 until his retirement in 2000, aged 32.
Keen was also a University lecturer in Sports Physiology for 10 years until 1997 with degrees from University College Chichester and Loughborough University, and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Brighton. In his academic career he has had over 20 papers published in peer reviewed journals.
Keen set up British Cycling's National Lottery funded World Class Performance Programme based at the Manchester Velodrome and oversaw Great Britain’s move from the 13th ranked nation in world cycling in 1998 to 4th in 2002, based on World Championship results.
Keen joined UK Sport in 2004 as a Performance Consultant. Currently as Director of Performance at UK Sport, Peter Keen leads the work supporting the active delivery of Mission 2012 and UK Sport’s performance ambitions, including the Performance Advisor team and delivery of vital performance programmes around Talent ID, Research and Innovation and CPD within the system.
On his induction to the British Cycling Hall of Fame, Keen said: "It is a real honour to be recognised by my peers, and I am very proud to have been involved in the incredible journey that British Cycling has been on, and continues to pursue."
Other Inductees from decades past represented on the night included seven-time World Champion Beryl Burton OBE, eight times Tour de France stage winner Barry Hoban and Tom Simpson who died during the 1967 Tour while climbing Mont Ventoux.
Among more recent sporting heroes collecting their honours on the night were Chris Boardman MBE, who won three Tour de France yellow jerseys and an Olympic Gold medal, Olympic track heroes Craig MacLean and Paul Manning MBE and mountain bike legends Tim Gould and Caroline Alexander.
Others included Peter King CBE, whose 12 year tenure as British Cycling’s CEO set the organisation on its path to success and Eileen Grey CBE, one of the sport’s most prominent early pioneers, whose efforts led to women’s cycling gaining Olympic recognition.
A list of all 50 Hall of Fame inductees can be found on the British Cycling website.