I became a cycling champion – but I was booed

Maurice Burton was recently interviewed by Mobeen Azhar for the BBC radio programme Outlook – First broadcast on the BBC World Service on 5th November 2024.

Londoner Maurice Burton begged his father for a bike. The answer was no – but Maurice found one another way. Within six years, in 1974, he’d become national cycling champion – the first black person in Britain to achieve this. But in his moment of glory, the crowd made it clear they weren’t happy. Maurice shares his story of overcoming obstacles, riding in Belgium’s intense racing circuit, and becoming a legend of South London’s cycling scene. His biography, The Maurice Burton Way, is out now.

Programme details on bbc.co.uk

Listen to the interview on BBC Sounds