Following a successful race season on the world stage as a professional mountain biker, Emmy Lan is being recognized as one of the province’s best athletes.
The 20-year-old from Comox was selected as the winner of Sport BC’s Junior Female Athlete of the Year at its 56th annual Athlete of the Year Awards.
Having grown up riding mountain bikes and racing in B.C., she says it feels particularly special because mountain biking is a relatively small sport compared with others in the world.
“It’s really cool to be recognized by Sport BC, especially at the awards night. There was a bunch of sports like golf and hockey and soccer, which have pretty big support systems,” said Lan.
“So to still be recognized as a small sport and for all the hard work I’ve put in over the last few years was cool.”
Last year saw Lan win the UCI Enduro World Cup women’s U21 category. It was the second time she won the overall season but was the first time for her as part of a factory team, Forbidden Bike Company out of Cumberland in this case.
“That was a huge help to getting me to the races and supporting me while I was at the races,” said Lan.
“It takes a lot of hard work and I think living in B.C. is one of the greatest places to train for mountain biking. Especially on the Island, I just have so much support and awesome opportunities to train. Bringing it to the world level is cool.”
Mountain biking has been a part of Lan’s life since she was young and growing up in the Comox Valley. Describing herself as competitive, she did her first race at 15 years old with help from coaches Chad and CJ Hendren at Gravity MTB, a local coaching and training organization.
Her favourite part of competing is the requirement to push yourself as hard as you can, especially against the clock.
However, her success has not come without its challenges, particularly with mountain biking being a male dominated sport.
“My entire team is all guys, which pushes you so much riding with them all the time,” said Lan. “I think that also makes it really important having role models. So, I try to be a great role model for the younger girls who are in the sport.”
As she heads into the next season, she wants to thank Gravity MTB, the United Riders of Cumberland who build and maintain the area’s trails, and Forbidden Bike Company who will be supporting her.
She plans to keep on racing and will move on to the elite categories in 2025.
“I think that will be a big jump, it always is. So, I’d like to try an improve myself in that category as well which might take some time, but I’m willing to work for it,” said Lan.
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