COURTNEY Kate

General
NEW CLUB
In December 2018 she made the decision to leave her long-time sponsor Specialized after eight years, to join Scott-SRAM team under Thomas Frischknecht. "It's always a tricky thing, but this was the right opportunity and the right move for the coming years, to sign through 2020. It was definitely a decision that came from my side. Thomas has a lot of experience working with female riders, he worked with Jenny Rissveds when she won the [2016] Olympic gold medal, and he was an important part of her team, so I'm honoured and excited to have the opportunity to have him on my side, helping me find ways to improve as I work to make the next jump in the elite field." (cyclingnews.com, 03 Jan 2019)

TOKYO TARGET
She was disappointed not to be chosen for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, but admits she didn't do enough to deserve the spot. "In 2016, when I didn't make the Olympic team, it was a discretionary pick. I thought I had a chance, but I really didn't do enough to earn that spot. And I remember having the realisation, when I found out I wasn't going, that it really mattered to me, and realising how badly I had actually wanted to go. But I think, in a lot of ways, [I wanted to go] for the wrong reason. I wanted to go because I wanted to be an Olympian. I wanted to have this experience. I remember having a moment where I was like, 'I don't want to go in 2020 just to go'. I want to qualify automatically. I want to be one of the best in the field. I want to go to compete and to be a real competitor at that race." (cyclingtips.com, 13 Jun 2019)

DIFFERENT DISCIPLINES
She hopes to explore different disciplines following the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. "I'm so full-throttle focused on that [Olympic 2020] goal that it's going to work better for me, at least through Tokyo, to just stay really focused and to put all of myself into that one goal. After that, or depending on how things shake out, I'm not sure exactly what the timeline will be, but someday, I'd love to try other disciplines. I'm sure I'll race cyclocross, even just for the skills." (cyclingtips.com, 13 Jun 2019)