Olympic gold medallist Sarah Ulmer calls it quits

New Zealand's Olympic gold medallist Sarah Ulmer announced her retirement this week after years spent trying to regain her winning form following a chronic sciatic nerve injury in her leg.

The 31 year-old holds the world record in the women's individual pursuit with the 3.24.537 she set at the Olympics in Athens, Greece in 2004. Ulmer switched from track to the road hoping to focus on the individual time trial, but a recurring injury kept her from regaining her top form. In 2006, she was plagued by back and leg pain, and expressed her frustration with the problems to Cyclingnews earlier this year.

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Laura Weislo has been with Cyclingnews since 2006 after making a switch from a career in science. As Managing Editor, she coordinates coverage for North American events and global news. As former elite-level road racer who dabbled in cyclo-cross and track, Laura has a passion for all three disciplines. When not working she likes to go camping and explore lesser traveled roads, paths and gravel tracks. Laura specialises in covering doping, anti-doping, UCI governance and performing data analysis.