Finn Edwards

My name is Finn Edwards and I am a Year 11 student at James Hargest College in Invercargill.

My main passion is competitive cycling and my favourite place to be is on my bike, whether it be at the velodrome or the road.  My ultimate goal is to excel on the international cycling stage. I have been riding competitively since I was 11 years old and have multiple national titles in track cycling.

I love Track Cycling. It’s about more than just speed and fitness, there are a lot of tactics involved and I love the fast decision-making. I love being on the track, surrounded by other riders & going extremely fast on bikes with no brakes! I love road riding and enjoy watching the local Tour of Southland and the Tour de France for inspiration. I took part in the Tour of New Zealand earlier this year and am aiming to get involved in some of the professional road racing events once I am old enough.

Outside of cycling, I am interested in exploring political sciences or history at university and would love to work in foreign affairs or the diplomatic service. At school I love anything to do with people, places & music. I also love mountain and alpine hiking, and I am lucky to live in Southland, where we have access to some amazing places nearby to explore. I have already completed the Milford, Routeburn, Kepler and Rakiura Great Walks plus a number of other lesser known ‘great’ walks. I’m hoping to start knocking off some of the Great Walks further north.

I have my Duke of Edinburgh bronze award and I am currently working on achieving my silver award. I have been really lucky to have some amazing coaches and teachers and I think it’s really important to give back so I have been volunteering by tutoring junior percussion & young cyclers at the velodrome. I'm looking forward to learning the skills that will help me accomplish all that I hope to, without losing sight of all the important ‘stuff’ that keeps me grounded and makes me who I am.