In 2011 Kyle Bridgwood was cycling in Townsville when he was hit by a car, severing the then 22-year-old’s patella tendon, fracturing his kneecap and resulting in an acquired brain injury affecting his coordination and fine motor control.
After spending three weeks in hospital Kyle began a six-month rehabilitation stint, and a year later he represented Australia at the 2012 Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Trials in California, USA, where he won gold.
Motivated by his success, as well as by the number of injured soldiers competing at the Trials, Kyle began working towards carving out a career as a Para-cyclist.
Since being internationally classified as a C4 Para-athlete, Kyle has dominated the cycling circuit. After bursting onto the national scene to claim silver in the time trial and road race at the 2015 Cycling Australia Para-cycling Road National Championships behind 11-time world champion Michael Gallagher, he competed at the UCI …
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In 2011 Kyle Bridgwood was cycling in Townsville when he was hit by a car, severing the then 22-year-old’s patella tendon, fracturing his kneecap and resulting in an acquired brain injury affecting his coordination and fine motor control.
After spending three weeks in hospital Kyle began a six-month rehabilitation stint, and a year later he represented Australia at the 2012 Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Trials in California, USA, where he won gold.
Motivated by his success, as well as by the number of injured soldiers competing at the Trials, Kyle began working towards carving out a career as a Para-cyclist.
Since being internationally classified as a C4 Para-athlete, Kyle has dominated the cycling circuit. After bursting onto the national scene to claim silver in the time trial and road race at the 2015 Cycling Australia Para-cycling Road National Championships behind 11-time world champion Michael Gallagher, he competed at the UCI Para-Cycling World Championships in Nottwil, Switzerland where he won gold in the time trial C4.
At his Paralympic debut in Rio, Kyle won silver medals in the individual pursuit C4 and time trial C4.
Originally from South Africa, he moved to Australia when he was 11. His dad represented South Africa in cycling, so it comes as a surprise to many that Kyle did not discover his own love of the sport until he enlisted in the army.
Kyle looks to former professional road cyclist Jens Voigt for inspiration, admiring his aggressive riding style and determination to improve and succeed.
Based on the Sunshine Coast, ‘Bridgy’ loves to spend what spare time he has watching movies, cooking, learning languages and discovering new cultures through travel. His favourite movie is Avatar and his favourite television series is Game of Thrones.
His ultimate goal in sport and life is to keep it fun and enjoyable, and in ten years’ time he hopes to be travelling the world on his bike.
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