Few athletes exuded such an air of invincibility as Sir Chris Hoy. His physical prowess on the saddle, winning him six Olympic cycling golds, made him seem almost superhuman.
We now know that for the past year, however, he has been living with a devastating secret: that his cancer diagnosis revealed in February was terminal.
His announcement yesterday, that he had been given between two and four years to live, stunned not just the sporting world but ordinary members of the public who recognise in the father of two – who was knighted in 2008 – a man of unfailing decency and humility, both on and off the track.
‘Our nation’s dream of a perfect sporting hero,’ is how he has been described.
It was late last September when, thinking he had strained himself in the gym, he went to the doctor and was told the primary cancer found in his prostate had spread to his bones, pelvis, hip, spine, shoulder and rib. Stage 4 cancer, in other words.
Hoy’s wife Sarra (pictured together at London 2012) also has an incurable disease – multiple sclerosis
Chis Hoy is currently in Copenhagen covering the World Track Cycling championships for the BBC where he shared a picture on Instagram. (Chris Hoy pictured in Copenhagen with the BBC sport team)
‘In the space of one sentence, just a collection of words, your whole world has fallen apart,’ Hoy, 48, has written in a memoir to be published next month.
The random cruelty of fate, though, had not yet runs its course. Just before Christmas, his wife Sarra, 40, learned she has a ‘very active and aggressive type of multiple sclerosis’, which was degenerative and incurable, after experiencing a tingling sensation in her face and tongue and undergoing a scan; on bad days she can struggle to open the front door with her key.
Nevertheless, when many might have gone under, against all the odds, Hoy has managed to stay positive.
‘I’m not trying to pretend that every day is amazing,’ he said in an interview with the Sunday Times. ‘But I have genuine moments of joy… I’m back to my old self.’
Social media platforms were flooded with tributes and support for Hoy, one of our greatest Olympians, after the news broke on Saturday.
Fellow Olympic cyclist Sir Mark Cavendish called him a ‘hero of a human being’. Rugby World Cup winner Matt Dawson said his ‘legacy was second to none’ and British Winter Olympic champion Amy Williams wrote: ‘A pure superhuman who everyone loves.’
His plight, of course, will resonate with families around the country who have been touched by cancer.
He is a sobering reminder that the disease can strike at anyone however fit or healthy. Indeed, Hoy barely seems to have aged since he won his first Olympic gold in Athens two decades ago.
Speaking on the BBC‘s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Health Secretary Wes Streeting – who was declared cancer-free in 2021 after having his kidney removed – said Sir Chris had ‘done the country an enormous service’ by being open and positive’.
He added: ‘That’s worth more than the stack of Olympic golds that he has built up over his career.’
One of the most difficult moments for Chris and Sarra, as any parent will understand, was telling their two children Callum and Chloe, then nine and six, about the cancer, which they decided to do one night during dinner.
While the children know their father has cancer, Hoy and his wife have kept the fact their mother has MS from them. (Sir Chris Hoy and his wife Sarra with their son Callum and daughter Chloe)
One of the most difficult moments for Chris and Sarra was telling their two children Callum and Chloe about the cancer. (Sarra Hoy pictured with their son Callum)
Hoy (pictured at London 2012) revealed his cancer diagnosis in February, but did not tell fans that it was terminal
‘Are you going to die?’ Callum asked. His father assured him that, thanks to a treatment called chemotherapy, he hoped ‘to be here for many, many years.’
‘I never want to lie to them,’ he explained in the interview, ‘but there are certain things you don’t need to tell them straight away.’
He says recording the audio version of his memoir, ‘All that Matters: My Toughest Race Yet’, was even more traumatic.
The last chapter he says ‘is basically where I’m writing to the kids. You know my message to them. You know, my final message to them.
‘[You’re] reading the words out loud, you have to connect emotionally. You’ve got to actually read in a way that means something. But the risk is getting too close to it – because you’re suddenly thinking, these are the words that my kids will listen to when I’m gone.
‘And that is, without doubt, the hardest thing I’ve ever done.’
While the children know their father has cancer, Hoy and his wife have kept the fact their mother has MS from them. The couple have chosen low risk, less effective treatments for her condition instead of more potentially effective, but riskier, new treatments.
Initially, at least, Hoy had hoped to keep his ordeal a secret but ‘his hand had been forced’ because the news had leaked out. He was midway through chemo when a friend got a call from a journalist asking if it was true Hoy had a ‘terminal cancer.’
Hence the reason for his Instagram post earlier this year revealing he had cancer – despite ‘having no symptoms up to that point’ – but not that it was terminal.
Sir Chris pictured in 2012 winning the Men’s Keirin final in Melbourne, with his wife Sarra Hoy
Sir Chris Hoy and Sarra Kemp attend the BBC Sports Personality of the Year at Dock10 Studios on December 21, 2022 in Manchester
At the Paris Olympics, when he was back on our TV screens again, he looked as fresh-faced and youthful as ever. His colleagues at the BBC and the cycling fraternity, who knew he had been ill, were delighted to see him again which was ‘heartwarming’, he says.
Yet all along, he knew he was dying. Not once did he show any self-pity, on or off the cameras. Doesn’t this tell you everything you need to know about the kind of man Chis Hoy is?
Hoy was inspired to take up cycling by the famous BMX scenes in the film E.T. By the time he had retired in 2013, he had amassed six Olympic, 11 world and 43 World Cup titles following an eight-year career. He was the first British male Olympian in 100 years to win three gold medals in one Games, at Beijing in 2008, when he became a household name. Two years later he married Sarra, a lawyer from his native Edinburgh. Such was his prestige that he was chosen to be the flag bearer at the closing ceremony.
There was a fairytale ending to his stellar career at London in 2012 when he stood on the podium with his two final gold medals around his neck.
A stadium built in Glasgow for the 2014 Commonwealth Games was named in his honour.
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney called Chris Hoy a ‘person of incredible courage,’ sending him good wishes in an X post.
‘As unnatural as it feels, this is nature,’ he reflected in his Sunday Times interview. ‘You know, we were all born and we will all die, and this is just part of the process. ‘You remind yourself that aren’t I lucky that there is medicine I can take that will fend this off for as long as possible … this is bigger than the Olympics. It’s bigger than anything. This is about appreciating life and finding joy.’
Chis Hoy is currently in Copenhagen covering the World Track Cycling championships for the BBC where he shared a picture on Instagram.
The accompany message was typical of the man.
‘I just wanted to reassure you all that I’m feeling fit, strong, and positive, and overwhelmed by all the love and support shown to my family and me. Onwards!’