12:30pm Thursday 28th August 2008
By Mark Hilditch
COURAGEOUS Crewe Olympian Shanaze Reade is to receive a civic honour from her hometown following her brave performance at the Beijing games.
World champion Shanaze, crashed out in a dramatic women's BMX final to shatter her Olympic dream.
But her efforts are to be recognised with the renaming of the Tipkinder BMX track in her honour.
Shanaze, aged 19, was badly bruised after wiping out on the final bend in the final, with French rider Anne-Caroline Chausson taking gold in her final race.
The Crewe teenager had started well before Chausson passed her on the first turn.
She was attempting to pass Chausson on the inside but clipped her back wheel and tumbled down.
Shanaze had suffered a heavy fall in the opening semi-final heat but recovered her composure by finishing second in the next and then clocked the fastest time in winning the third heat to reach the final.
Following the final, the bruised and disappointed cyclist said: "I put everything into this and I couldn't have done any more.
“I've fallen off and got back up.
“I gave it my heart and everything, but today it wasn't good enough."
Her bid to overtake Chausson sent Reade sprawling from her bike and onto the track.
She added: "I dug deep and gave it the best shot I could but today it wasn't good enough.
"Why settle for silver?" she said. "I put absolutely everything into this, my heart and my soul, everything since the age of 10. You don't train as hard as I do for silver. It's about the gold or nothing.
"They say you learn the hard way, and I guess I have.
"But a true athlete and a true winner always comes back stronger, and I'm going to turn it round and show everyone what I'm made of."
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