Grace Brown (born 7 July 1992) is an Australian road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Women's WorldTeam FDJ–Suez.[8] Brown competed in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She just missed out on a medal in the women’s time trial, finishing fourth. She also competed in the women's road race where she came 47th.[9][10] At the 2024 Paris Olympics she won the gold medal in the women's individual time trial event.

Grace Brown
Personal information
Full nameGrace Brown
Nickname
Born (1992-07-07) 7 July 1992 (age 32)[3]
Camperdown, Victoria, Australia
Height168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Team information
Current teamFDJ–Suez
DisciplineRoad
RoleRider
Rider typeAll-rounder
Amateur teams
2015–2016St Kilda Cycling Club
2016Route 33[4]
2017–2018Holden Team Gusto Racing[5]
Professional teams
2018Wiggle High5
2019–2021Mitchelton–Scott[6][7]
2022–FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope
Major wins
One-day races and Classics
Olympic Games Time Trial (2024)
World Time Trial Championships (2024)
National Time Trial Championships (2019, 2022-2024)
Liège–Bastogne–Liège (2024)
Classic Brugge–De Panne (2021)
Brabantse Pijl (2020)
Medal record
Representing  Australia
Women's road bicycle racing
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Time trial
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Birmingham Time trial
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Zurich Time trial
Gold medal – first place 2024 Zurich Mixed team relay
Silver medal – second place 2022 Wollongong Time trial
Silver medal – second place 2023 Stirling Time trial

Career

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2015–2018 seasons

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Brown started cycling in 2015 after previously being involved in running.[11][12] She started 2018 riding for Holden Team Gusto Racing. She then joined British UCI team Wiggle High5 for the latter part of 2018 season after being selected as the recipient of the Amy Gillett Cycling Scholarship.[13][14] Her first race for Wiggle High5 was the Tour of California, a UCI Women's World Tour event, that was held in mid-May.[15]

2019–2020 seasons

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Brown joined the Mitchelton–Scott team at the start of the 2019 season.[11] She had a good start to the 2019 season winning the Australian National Time Trial Championships and a stage at the Tour Down Under.[16] She achieved her first major victory in Europe in the autumn of 2020 winning Brabantse Pijl in a solo breakaway.[17] She was awarded AusCycling's Female Road Cyclist of the Year award for 2020.[18]

2021 season

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Brown started the 2021 season in Australia with second places in both the road race and time trial at the National Championships.[19][20]

Brown had strong results in the 2021 Spring classics. She achieved her first victory in the Women's World Tour at Brugge-De Panne.[21] She was also second at Nokere Koerse and third at the Tour of Flanders.[22] She was selected in the Australian team to compete in the road race and time trial at the Tokyo Olympics.[23] She finished fourth in the time trial.[24]

In August 2021 Brown signed a two-year contract with French Women's WorldTeam FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope.[25] She ended the 2021 season early to have shoulder surgery.[26]

2024 season

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Brown won the Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes in April.[27] In June 2024 Brown announced her plan to retire from professional cycling at the end of the 2024 season[28] and in the following month she won the Olympic time trial on very wet Parisian roads.[29] In September, she won the time trial at the World Championships, becoming the first cyclist to win both the Olympic and World championship time trial races in the same season.[30]

Major results

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2017
Oceania Continental Road Championships
5th Time trial
5th Road race
2018
Oceania Continental Road Championships
1st   Time trial
2nd Road race
National Road Championships
3rd Road race
4th Time trial
5th Overall Tour Down Under
9th Overall Herald Sun Tour
2019
1st   Time trial, National Road Championships
1st Stage 3 Tour Down Under
8th Overall Herald Sun Tour
10th Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
2020
1st Brabantse Pijl
National Road Championships
2nd Time trial
3rd Road race
2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
5th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2021
1st Classic Brugge–De Panne
National Road Championships
2nd Road race
2nd Time trial
2nd Nokere Koerse
3rd Tour of Flanders
4th Clasica Femenina Navarra
4th Time trial, Olympic Games
5th La Course by Le Tour de France
6th Dwars door Vlaanderen
7th Overall Vuelta a Burgos
1st Stage 1
8th Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
2022
1st   Time trial, Commonwealth Games
National Road Championships
1st   Time trial
2nd Road race
1st La Périgord
1st Stage 3 Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta
2nd   Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2nd Overall The Women's Tour
1st Stage 4
2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
3rd Classic Lorient Agglomération
3rd GP de Plumelec-Morbihan
4th La Classique Morbihan
5th Overall Setmana Ciclista Valenciana
7th Tour of Flanders
2023
National Road Championships
1st   Time trial
2nd Road race
1st   Overall Tour Down Under
1st   Points classification
1st Stage 3
1st   Overall Bretagne Ladies Tour
1st Stage 3 (ITT)
1st GP de Plumelec-Morbihan
2nd   Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
5th Overall Tour of Scandinavia
1st Stage 4 (ITT)
6th Amstel Gold Race
6th Overall Tour féminin international des Pyrénées [fr]
2024
1st   Time trial, Olympic Games
UCI Road World Championships
1st   Time trial
1st   Team relay
National Road Championships
1st   Time trial
4th Road race
1st   Overall Bretagne Ladies Tour
1st Stage 1 (ITT) & 3
1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège
5th Deakin University Road Race

Classics results timeline

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Monuments results timeline
Monument 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Tour of Flanders 14 3 7 23
Paris–Roubaix Did not exist NH 12 13 61
Liège–Bastogne–Liège 2 2 46 1

Major championship results timeline

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Event 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
  Olympic Games Time trial Not held 4 Not held 1
Road race 47 23
  World Championships Time trial 5 2 2 1
Road race 48 91 35 24
  Oceanian Championships Time trial 5 1 Not held
Road race 5 2
  Commonwealth Games Time trial NH Not held 1 Not held
Road race 33
  National Championships Time trial 4 1 2 2 1 1 1
Road race 3 12 3 2 2 2 4


Legend
Did not compete
DNF Did not finish
NH Not held
DNE Did not exist

References

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  1. ^ "Meet The Team". Holden Team Gusto. Archived from the original on 7 March 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  2. ^ Malseed, Shannon (28 July 2017). "WOMEN'S DEVELOPMENT TEAM BLOG: SHANNON MALSEED – THE INSIDE SCOOP". Cycling Australia. Archived from the original on 6 May 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  3. ^ Grace Brown at Cycling Archives (archived) accessed 14 January 2018
  4. ^ Vella-Wright, Jarrah (23 July 2016). "GRACE BROWN TRANSITIONS FROM RUNNING TO CYCLING". Cycling Victoria. Archived from the original on 10 August 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  5. ^ "Brown's star on the rise in the Subaru NRS". Cycle Sport News. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  6. ^ "Mitchelton-Scott women announce 10-rider roster for 2019". Cyclingnews.com. Immediate Media Company. 19 November 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  7. ^ Weislo, Laura (8 January 2020). "2020 Team Preview: Mitchelton-Scott Women". Cyclingnews.com. Immediate Media Company. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  8. ^ "Team BikeExchange". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 13 January 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  9. ^ "Australian Olympic Team for Tokyo 2021". The Roar. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  10. ^ "Grace BROWN". Olympics.com. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  11. ^ a b "New rider - Who is Grace Brown?". Mitchelton-SCOTT GreenEDGE Cycling. 6 March 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  12. ^ Been, José (13 October 2020). "Grace Brown, Aussie aggressor: 'I am not afraid to fail while trying'". CyclingTips. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  13. ^ "NRS TEAM PROFILE: HOLDEN TEAM GUSTO". Ride Media. 12 March 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  14. ^ Giuliani, Simone (19 April 2018). "Brown awarded Amy Gillett scholarship, Wiggle High5 provides development spot". Ella CyclingTips. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  15. ^ "Wiggle High5 welcomes 2018 Amy Gillett scholarship winner Grace Brown". Wiggle High5. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  16. ^ "Grace Brown re-signs with Mitchelton-Scott for 2020". CyclingNews. 11 October 2019. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Grace Brown wins Brabantse Pijl Dames 2020". CyclingNews. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  18. ^ "Porte wins Australian Cyclist of the Year award". Cycling News. 17 February 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  19. ^ "Gigante defends elite and U23 women's time trial title". Cycling News. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  20. ^ "Australian Road Championships: Sarah Roy wins elite women's road race". Cycling News. 7 February 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  21. ^ "Grace Brown wins Brugge-De Panne with solo move". VeloNews. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  22. ^ "Grace Brown: You can't be disappointed with a podium at Tour of Flanders". Swiss Cycles. 5 April 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  23. ^ "Australian road cycling team revealed for Tokyo Olympics". Cycling Tips. 21 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  24. ^ "Aussie heartbreak as Van Vleuten takes Women's time trial gold". SBS Cycling Central. 29 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  25. ^ "Grace Brown signs two-year deal with FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope". Cycling News. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  26. ^ "Grace Brown to end season early as shoulder injury requires surgery". Cycling News. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  27. ^ "Grace Brown wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège". AusCycling. 22 April 2024. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  28. ^ "'I really miss my life in Australia' – Grace Brown to retire from professional cycling at end of 2024 Grace wins the gold medal at the olympics 2024". Cyclingnews. 22 June 2024. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  29. ^ Media, P. A. (27 July 2024). "Anna Henderson survives storm to take silver for Team GB in women's time trial". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  30. ^ url= https://amp.theguardian.com/sport/2024/sep/22/remco-evenepoel-retains-world-time-trial-title-with-victory-in-zurich
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