Keely
Shaw

Track and road cyclist Keely Shaw is now an established star in the women’s C4 Para cycling category on both the track and the road.

At the 2024 Para cycling World Track Championships, she won the bronze medal in the women’s C4 3000m individual pursuit. On the road World Cup circuit, the highlight was a bronze in a road race at the second stop in Belgium.

In 2023, she she showed her versatility once again at the combined road and track worlds. She took silver in the individual pursuit and bronze in the road time trial. At the Parapan Am a few weeks later she was crowned the individual pursuit champion in the track.

In 2022, she capped a strong season with a double bronze performance at the Para cycling road world championships held in Baie-Comeau, Que., placing third in the time trial and the road race.

The Saskatchewan native reached a high point in her career at Tokyo 2020 with a bronze medal on track in the women’s individual pursuit. She was the only athlete from the province to win either an Olympic or Paralympic medal for those Games.

Her first major international success was a silver in the individual pursuit at the 2019 world track championships.

She became a Para cyclist in 2016 after dabbling in several sports after a horseriding accident left her with partial paralysis on her left side at age 15 in 2009. She entered her first road race in 2017. She was invited to a Cycling Canada camp in 2017 and that same year won two medals at the national championships.

In 2018 she entered her first world championships. She was fourth in the individual pursuit at the track worlds and fourth and seventh in the time trial and road race at the road worlds.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

2020 Paralympic Games (bronze in individual pursuit)… 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 World Championships (5-time medallist)… Saskatchewan’s Female Athlete of the Year for 2019 and 2021…

PERSONAL

In 2009 at age 15 she fell off a horse on her family farm and was diagnosed with a broken blood vessel in her brain which caused partial paralysis on her left side… Before her accident she was a high-level hockey player with Olympic dreams…Completed her master’s degree at the University of Saskatchewan in kinesiology in 2019. Her thesis was on the impact of dark chocolate on cycling at high altitudes. Pursuing her PhD in kinesiology — exercise physiology and sport nutrition.

NOTABLE INTERNATIONAL RESULTS

2024 World Track Championships, individual pursuit, 3rd

2023 Parapan American Games individual pursuit 1st

2023 Parapan American Games time trial 4th

2023 Parapan American Games road race 5th

2023 World Track Championships individual pursuit 2nd

2023 World Road Championships time trial 3rd

2023 World Road Championships road race 9th

2022 World Road Championships time trial 3rd

2022 World Road Championships road race 3rd

2021 Paralympic Games individual pursuit (track) 3rd

2021 Paralympic Games time trial (road) 4th

2021 Paralympic Games road race 13th

2020 World Track Championships individual pursuit 4th

2019 World Road Championships time trial 4th

2019 World Road Championships road race 7th

2019 World Track Championships individual pursuit 2nd

2018 World Road Championships time trial 4th

2018 World Road Championships road race 8th

2018 World Track Championships individual pursuit 5th