Matthew Rowe (born 28 April 1988) is a Welsh

racing cyclist Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling spo ...

Biography

Born in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

, Rowe began racing at a young age, initially riding with his parents on a

tandem Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which two or more animals, machines, or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction. ''Tandem'' can also be used more generally to refer to any group of persons or objects w ...

. He began to enjoy cycling and became a member of the Maindy Flyers, based at

Maindy Stadium Maindy Centre (, formerly known as Maindy Stadium, now also known as Maindy Pool and Cycle Track) is a velodrome and indoor swimming pool facility in the Maindy area of Cardiff, Wales. The velodrome was used in the 1958 British Empire and Common ...

. As a junior, he was a member of

British Cycling British Cycling (formerly the British Cycling Federation) is the main national sport governing body, governing body for cycle sport in United Kingdom, Great Britain. It administers most competitive cycling in Great Britain, the Channel Islands a ...

's Olympic Development Programme, Rowe became the 2005 junior scratch race European champion, and finished eighth in the same event at the junior world championships. Rowe received funding for three to four months from the

Dave Rayner Dave Rayner (born October 26, 1982) is an American former professional football placekicker in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL draft. He played college football at ...

fund in 2007. Rowe suffered from

Glandular Fever A gland is a cell or an organ in an animal's body that produces and secretes different substances that the organism needs, either into the bloodstream or into a body cavity or outer surface. A gland may also function to remove unwanted substances ...

in 2007, and hoping to make his mark on the

Premier Calendar The British Cycling Premier Calendar Road Race Series is a season-long competition run by British Cycling. It comprises a series of road bicycle races for the country's top domestic road riders. Organisation and events In 2010 points were awar ...

, riding for Rapha Condor recycling.co.uk for the 2008 season. Rowe studied at university for a business degree until 2009 and currently studies as

Cornell Law School Cornell Law School is the law school of Cornell University, a private university, private, Ivy League university in Ithaca, New York. One of the five Ivy League law schools, Cornell Law School offers four degree programs (Juris Doctor, JD, Maste ...

whilst maintaining membership of the prestigious Cornell Law Review, with the hope of cycling full-time with the aim of a

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

gold medal in 2010. However his hopes were scuppered by injuries sustained by a crash in the

Rás Tailteann Rás Tailteann (; "Tailteann Race"), often shortened to the Rás, is an annual international cycling stage race, held in Ireland. Traditionally held in May, the race returned after a hiatus in 2022 as 5 day event held in June. By naming the rac ...

. His brother

Luke Luke may refer to: People and fictional characters * Luke (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Luke (surname), including a list of people with the name * Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luk ...

is also a racing cyclist, and his father Courtney coaches the Paralympian Simon Richardson. Rowe is married to Olympic, World and European team pursuit gold medallist

Dani King Danielle 'Dani' Rowe MBE (née King; born 21 November 1990) is a British former road and track cyclist. She retired from cycling in December 2018. A team pursuit gold medallist from the London Olympics in 2012, Rowe also won three consecutive ...

. The couple became engaged in 2015 and were married in

Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral () is a Church in Wales cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul, and ...

on 30 September 2017. Matt Rowe founded Rowe & King (May 2015), a cycle coaching company, alongside father Courtney, fiancée Dani King and brother Luke Rowe. Rowe & King offer coaching in the sport of cycling utilising the extensive experience gained by Luke, Dani, Courtney and Matt himself.

Major results

Track

;2000 :1st Under 12 Omnium,

British National Track Championships The British National Track Championships are a Track cycling event held annually and organised by the national governing body for track cycling (and other forms of cycling) in Great Britain, British Cycling (formerly the British Cycling Federat ...

;2005 :1st Scratch Race,

European Track Championships The European Track Cycling Championships are a set of elite level competition events held annually for the various disciplines and distances in track cycling, exclusively for European cyclists, and regulated by the European Cycling Union (UEC) ...

– Junior :2nd Team pursuit,

(with Jonathan Bellis,

Alex Dowsett Alex Edward Albert Dowsett (born 3 October 1988) is a British former professional Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . He was a time trial specialist, and in 2015, he broke track cycling's world hour record ...

& Russell Hampton) – Senior :2nd Madison,

(with

Ben Swift Benjamin John Swift (born 5 November 1987) is a British professional Track cycling, track and road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Swift won the UCI Track Cycling World Championships – Men's scratch, scratch race a ...

) – Senior ;2006 :2nd Madison,

(with Adam Blythe) – Senior :2nd Scratch race,

– Junior ;2007 :3rd British National Derny Championships,

;2010 :1st British National Derny Championships, Quibell Park Velodrome

Road

;2005 :2nd Welsh National Road Race Championships – Junior ;2008 :1st Severn Bridge Road Race :1st Border Road Race ;2013 :1st Norman Harris Memorial Race

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowe, Matthew 1988 births Living people Welsh male cyclists British male cyclists Cyclists from Cardiff 21st-century Welsh sportsmen