Ellen Hunter (born 12 February 1968,

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the county ...

) is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

competitive cyclist and tandem pilot for

Aileen McGlynn Aileen McGlynn (born 22 June 1973) is a Scottish paralympic tandem champion cyclist, tandem piloted until 2009 by Ellen Hunter but most regularly piloted by Helen Scott. Biography Born in Paisley and grew up in Glasgow, McGlynn was partia ...

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaired ...

events. Hunter and McGlynn broke the flying 200m women's tandem World record in April 2004. Hunter met her husband

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chr ...

through cycling, and both were selected to ride as pilots for visually impaired cyclists at the

2004 Paralympic Games ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olympic ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

, as part of the

British Cycling British Cycling (formerly the British Cycling Federation) is the main national governing body for cycle sport in Great Britain. It administers most competitive cycling in Great Britain, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It represents Brit ...

team. At the 2004 Athens Paralympics, McGlynn and Hunter won gold in the women's time trial B-13 and silver in the Individual sprint. At the 2006 IPC Track Cycling World Championships in

Aigle , neighboring_municipalities= Vaud: Yvorne, Leysin, Ormont-Dessous, Ollon; Valais: Vouvry, Collombey-Muraz , twintowns = L'Aigle (France), Tübingen (Germany), Bassersdorf (Switzerland) } Aigle (French for "eagle", ; frp, Âgllo) is a his ...

, Switzerland, Ellen Hunter piloted Aileen McGlynn to win gold in the Tamdem Kilo (VI), setting a world record of 1:10.795 in the process and winning a

Rainbow Jersey The rainbow jersey is the distinctive cycling jersey, jersey worn by the reigning World Cycling Championship, world champion in a cycling discipline, since 1927. The jersey is predominantly white with five horizontal bands in the Union Cycli ...

for Wales, they ranked 17th among 33 male competitors. She broke her back in a cycling accident at the Women's Omnium at

Herne Hill Velodrome The Herne Hill Velodrome is a velodrome in Herne Hill, in south London. It is one of the oldest cycling tracks in the world, having been built in 1891. It hosted the track cycling events in the 1948 Summer Olympics and was briefly the home of C ...

, and was told she may never cycle again, she spent six weeks in hospital. Hunter and McGlynn, coached by

Barney Storey Richard Barnaby "Barney" Storey MBE (born 13 March 1977) is a British cyclist. He rides as a sighted pilot for blind or partially sighted athletes in tandem track cycling events. He competed at the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Paralympic Games and won ...

, once again broke the World Record at the

2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships The 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships were the World Championship for track cycling. They took place at the Manchester Velodrome in Manchester, United Kingdom from 26 to 30 March 2008. Eighteen events were scheduled; the women's team pur ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

, in a time of 1:10.381, but despite this, failed to gain a podium position. The pair represented Great Britain at the

2008 Beijing Paralympics The 2008 Summer Paralympic Games (), the 13th Summer Paralympic Games, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao. It was ...

, winning gold in the Kilo (B&VI 1–3), setting a new world record time of 1:09.066 in the process, and in the individual pursuit (B&VI 1–3). Hunter lives with her husband and two children in Penryn, Cornwall. Hunter was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

2009 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2009 were announced on 31 December 2008 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Christopher and Nevis,Saint Christopher. to ...

for services to disabled sport.

Palmarès

;2004 :1st Women's Tandem Kilo (B 1-3),

2004 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olymp ...

:2nd Women's Tandem Sprint (B 1-3),

;2006 :1st Tandem sprint, VISA Paralympic World Cup (B/VI female) :4th

British National Tandem Sprint Championships The British National Tandem Sprint Championships are held annually, organised by British Cycling British Cycling (formerly the British Cycling Federation) is the main national governing body for cycle sport in Great Britain. It administers mos ...

(with

Joby Ingram-Dodd Joby Ingram-Dodd (born 14 July 1980), is a former Welsh racing cyclist. He represented Wales at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. He has now moved on to become an actor, writer and producer. Currently working for Space Dive Productions ...

) ;2007 :1st Tandem sprint, VISA Paralympic World Cup (B/VI female)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Ellen 1968 births Living people Welsh track cyclists Welsh female cyclists Cyclists at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Paralympic cyclists for Great Britain Paralympic gold medalists for Great Britain Paralympic silver medalists for Great Britain Paralympic sighted guides Officers of the Order of the British Empire Sportspeople from Wrexham People from Penryn, Cornwall Medalists at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in cycling