A cyclist from Builth Wells has been named in the Team GB squad for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.

Lowri Thomas, 25, has been named as a travelling reserve in the women’s track sprint event.

Lowri is one of several talented Welsh athletes in the Team GB squad.

This will be the biggest cycling delegation ever sent to an Olympic Games for Team GB, as the team prepares to ride for medals across all five event disciplines.

Lowri was born in Nevill Hall Hospital in Abergavenny. She moved back to nearby Pandy in 2012 when her parents relocated, after growing up in Builth Wells and Cardiff.

She attended Ysgol Gwynllyw in Pontypool and Hereford Sixth Form College - her first club was Abergavenny Road Club.

Initially, Lowri competed in endurance events and stepped away from competitive cycling. However, she made a significant comeback in late 2020, shifting her focus to sprinting.

Lowri represented Wales in the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham where she won bronze in the team sprint event, alongside Rhian Edmunds and Emma Finucane.

She had become British Champion in Newport earlier that year alongside the same teammates, as the trio triumphed in the team sprint event.

Lowri followed up these successes with a silver medal in the team sprint at the European Championships this year in the Netherlands, as part of the Great Britain team.

Her rapid rise in the sprinting discipline highlights Lowri’s extraordinary talent and dedication.

Lowri is now based full-time in Manchester with the GB Cycling Academy.

Performance Director for the Great Britain Cycling Team, Stephen Park CBE, said: “I am delighted for each and every one of the riders we have announced today to represent Team GB in Paris and have no doubt that they will make the nation proud over the 18 days of cycling competition in Paris.

“We’re blessed with an incredibly talented, passionate and hungry squad of riders, and we are now fully focused on supporting their final preparations so that they can be at their very best come Paris.”

The other Welsh athletes who will represent Team GB in the cycling at this year’s Olympics are: Emma Finucane (women’s sprint), Ella Maclean-Howell (women’s mountain bike), Josh Tarling and Stevie Williams (men’s road).

A spokesperson for Welsh Cycling said: "The journeys of these Welsh cyclists from local clubs to the Olympics underscore the importance of community support, dedication, and robust development programs in Wales.”