Queensland’s Sharon Heap has ridden her way into the history books after winning Australia’s first ever cyclo-cross world title in Varese, Italy.
Heap claimed the rainbow jersey in the 65-69 category at the 2025 UCI Cyclo-cross Masters World Championships.
However, the Gold Coast Mountain Bike Club rider’s campaign almost ended before it began.
On the way to the venue, her bike bag tipped over on the uneven road, and a truck ran over the corner of it. When she went to assemble the bike, Heap discovered a cracked seat and a badly bent derailleur.
With her own bike out of action, she was left scrambling. Enter Specialized Italy, who stepped in with a loan bike.
Sharon Heap gets over a barrier on her way to the gold medal.
“I knew I had to win to repay them for lending me a bike for three days,” Heap said.
From the race start, Heap took the lead, holding off a well-known Italian ex-professional road cyclist and battling through the mud sections, overtook younger riders and picked her way through every obstacle.
“Pretty happy and emotional to get a win in this way,” she said.
The win comes eight years after Heap’s last Masters cyclo-cross worlds appearance, where she finished with silver.
It is also her second world title of the year after her cross-country success in Cairns.
New South Wales rider Liz Gray was Australia’s other representative in Varese and finished sixth in the 60-64 women’s category