The Endurance Athlete

Oscar Mingay, 21, from Cardiff, is a former Wales Racing Academy cyclist

I was always riding a bike alongside the normal stuff you do as a kid: football, rugby. But it wasn’t until after 2012, when I was 13, that I started to take it more seriously. Bradley Wiggins won the Tour de France, and then the way British cycling went at the Olympics, I was just like, ‘Oh wow, this is something I really want to do.’

As a kid, I suffered with anxiety issues and I fixated on staying small. People told me, ‘If you lose weight, you’ll be faster.’ At higher-up levels as a junior cyclist, there’s a lot of conversation about how much you weigh. If you’re sub 50kg, you’re a god. If you’re plus 60kg, you’re fat. You’re a unit.

On training days, I’d have a bowl of porridge and take three bars on my ride, though I’d try not to eat them all. The last hour, I’d be really light-headed.

Then I’d get home, have a recovery drink and sleep until tea. Because if I was asleep, I wasn’t eating.

I used to wake up late at night, go downstairs and open the fridge to stare at the food. But I wouldn’t touch it – until I started bingeing. I’d feel so sick. And I wouldn’t even have to make myself throw up, because my stomach had decreased. It was horrendous.

I had a conversation with my dad. There were a lot of tears. That’s when we went to see [sports and eating disorder specialist] Renee McGregor. I don’t think I’d be here right now if it wasn’t for her. She helped me to understand that I’m not Oscar the cyclist who weighs so much: I’m Oscar the person.

In 2019, I was told by Welsh Cycling that they weren’t going to keep me on. Because cycling had been my life, it very much flipped it upside down. I thought, ‘I’ll try to get a ride with a team.’ Then I was like, ‘No, this really isn’t for me any more.’

Now, I have a job in the fire service. Other than that, I’m just skating and surfing. Being out in the water on my board brings me a lot of happiness.