Zoe Bäckstedt proud to represent her family in the cycling world: "It’s the coolest name to have and I wouldn’t change it for the world"

For Zoe Bäckstedt, not becoming cyclist was hardly ever an option. The daughter of Paris-Roubaix champion Magnus Bäckstedt was riding a bike as far as her memory goes and so it's no surprise that the combination of genes and passion gave us one of the most talented cyclists in the peloton.

She believes the Castle Combe under 10s was likely her first win. "That’s the one I remember," she recalls in an interview with Velo. "I beat the boys. I started behind the boys, caught the boys, attacked them, beat them all at the finish. It was a sprint, I was maybe five or six bike lengths ahead. Little Zoe was very happy."

"Obviously, it’s great to have the name that we have, and people recognize us. Obviously, there sometimes comes a bit of pressure with that. Maybe at Roubaix there was a lot of attention, a lot of media around me at the race. Also around my dad coming in as a DS. So that wasn’t the easiest going into that race. But I think it’s all worth it in the end. It really is. It’s the coolest name to have and I wouldn’t change it for the world."

"I’ve got my endurance from my dad. Also a bit of endurance from my mom. She was national road race champion. So I’ve got endurance from her. But her sprint... I’ve definitely gotten that from her. And then built the rest of myself."