Robert John Hayles (born 21 January 1973) is an Englishtrack and road racing cyclist, who rode for Great Britain and England on the track and several professional teams on the road. Hayles competed in theteam pursuit andMadison events, until his retirement in 2011.[3] He now occasionally providesstudio-based analysis of cycle races forBritish Eurosport.[4]
He first represented Great Britain in the Olympic Games inAtlanta in1996, where he rode the team pursuit. Hayles represented England in the points race and team pursuit at the1998 Commonwealth Games. At the2000 Summer Olympics, he won silver in the individual pursuit. He was a member of the pursuit team that came third, and rode the Madison withBradley Wiggins, finishing fourth.[1]
From 2001 to 2003, Hayles rode for theCofidis team in France.
During this time Hayles rode theParis–Roubaix classic, one of cycling's five 'monuments', three times but was unable to finish the race on any occasion. Hayles still reports to love the paved classic despite his own poor fortune.[citation needed]
In March 2008, he was withdrawn from the Great Britain team at theworld track championships in Manchester,[5] and was suspended for 14 days after a blood test showed ahaematocrit 0.3% above the limit. His licence was restored after two weeks.[6] The rules regarding haematocrit testing for track cycling were subsequently changed as the resting period before an event can cause the red cell volume to exceed 50%, with subsequent blood tests often proving the riders to be clean.[citation needed]
As a child, Hayles lived inCowplain,Hampshire and attended Padnell Junior School. Hayles' father John Hayles, who died in 2016, was an amateur racing cyclist who became a professional wrestler in his twenties.[8] Hayles lives inHayfield, Derbyshire, with his wife, former Olympic swimmerVicky Horner, and their daughter, born 23 January 2006.[9][10]
National Criterium Championships
Team pursuit,Commonwealth Games
Team pursuit,Olympic Games
Team pursuit,UCI World Championships
Team pursuit
Madison (withMark Cavendish)
UCI Track Cycling World Champions –Men's madison_(cropped).jpg)
