Whanganui where it began, says award winner

OFFICIAL: Olympic Games Cycling starter, John McDonnell, used the Wanganui Cycling Club's 75-year-old starting marbles and their leather carrier case to make lane draws in Athens.PHOTO/FILE

John McDonnell owes his New Year Honour to his hometown Whanganui.

McDonnell has become an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to cycling, announced in the New Year Honours list.

Born and bred in the River City, McDonnell began his involvement with cycling in the late 1960s.

"Whanganui was the place to be if you wanted to be involved in cycling in the 1960s. I gained an excellent grounding in the sport in my hometown," McDonnell said while holidaying in Perth yesterday.

"The honour came as a surprise and totally unexpected. I am quite humbled and very honoured by it."

Up until six years ago McDonnell had been teaching at Wanganui High School, but moved to Waikato to take up the job as deputy principal at Cambridge High.

He soon got involved with the local cycling fraternity and was invited to become a trustee of the Home of Cycling Charitable Trust, Cambridge in 2011.

As a board member, he was involved in the process of the build and operational phases of the Avantidrome, Cycling Centre of Excellence in Cambridge. McDonnell continues to officiate at track and road events locally, nationally and internationally and provides ongoing coaching and organisation of cycling events for school children on a weekly basis.

"It's amazing to drive 4km down the road from home to a world-class international facility. My focus today is very much on youth in cycling, whether it be coaching, mentoring, officiating or helping to organise events," McDonnell said. "But my home will always be Whanganui and I owe this honour to growing up in Whanganui. Whatever part of cycling you look at - coaching, officiating or administrating - you can drill it back to Whanganui."

His list of achievements and input into the popular sport are substantial and significant.

He has held numerous roles since 1992 within Cycling New Zealand including, councillor, board member, New Zealand delegate to international meetings, vice-president, president, and technical adviser. He has officiated at numerous national, centre, club and inter-club events (road and track) since the 1980s.

He trained to be a Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) commissaire (international cycling referee) and anti-doping inspector in Egypt in 1991. Once attaining UCI qualification he developed and implemented a national, centre and club commissaires' course, and conducted multiple courses around New Zealand.

Since 1991 he has officiated at 99 international UCI events including Olympic Games, World Championships, World Cups, Commonwealth Games, Asian Championships and Continental Championships.

McDonnell has held numerous roles within Whanganui Cycling Club and the West Coast North Island Centre. He has also won the New Zealand Malayan Cup for contributions to cycling, 2003, and is a life member of Cycling New Zealand, West Coast North Island Centre and Whanganui Cycling Club.