Mountain bike racer Candice Lill fell in love with cycling as a toddler, when she took her dad on a marathon ride

For South African cyclist Candice Lill, standing on the podium at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022 was a lifelong dream come true. The 31-year-old mountain biker had crossed the finish line third in the English countryside.

It was a surreal moment, especially because in the days leading up to the race, she was fretting over whether she would even be able to take part.

“That was an amazing race for me. Firstly, because of the challenges I had going into that race. My bicycle didn’t arrive on the trip to Birmingham,” Lill told DM168.

Her Cannondale Scalpel machine had been left in Frankfurt where she caught a connecting flight to Birmingham. Because of delays related to Covid-19, the plane her precious bicycle was on was held up. A further miscommunication meant it remained in Germany for days while she sat worrying in the athletes’ village.  

“I spent a few days in the village not having any bicycle, not knowing if my bicycle was going to arrive for the race, and also not able to practise the course in the same way that the others were,” said the King Price Xtreme rider.

“That was pretty stressful. My bike ended up arriving a day or two before the race, thankfully. At that point I had missed out on some training, but I really believed I could do well in this race.”

She did, duelling with Australia’s Zoe Cuthbert to the bitter end in pursuit of a silver medal. Cuthbert had a bit more in the tank and was able to hold off the determined South African.

Naysayers might dilute success at the Commonwealth Games, saying its restrictive criteria mean some of the best athletes in the world miss out. 

On occasion even the athletes who do qualify opt to skip these games in order to participate in other competitions.

But for Lill, the bronze she won in England sparked a fire within her.

“To win a medal at a games has always been a big dream of mine. Winning a Commonwealth medal was the first step. Next, we go for the Olympics,” she said.

A great trek

The Durban-born cyclist has always loved riding bicycles. One memory stands out whenever she reminisces about falling in love with the sport.

“The earliest memory I have is from when I was three. I said to my dad: ‘We’re going to ride to the hotel and back.’ 

“We lived on a farm. It was 22km in total. So, when I was three, I rode 22km.

“I remember parts of that ride. My dad helped me along, of course. But it was coming from me that I wanted to do that,” she said.

A decade and a half later, she clinched her first international medal, at 17.

“I was selected to go to the World Champion­ships and it was in Australia. Obviously, it was my first World Championship and I had no idea what was going to happen or what to expect,” Lill said.

 Candice Lill of Team South Africa jumps during the Women's Cross-country race on day four of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Izu Mountain Bike Course on July 27, 2021 in Izu, Shizuoka, Japan. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images)