Four-time Olympic medallist Jack Carlin has announced his retirement from professional cycling, bringing to a close one of the most successful careers in modern British track sprinting. The 28-year-old Scot confirmed he will step away from the Great Britain Cycling Team after almost ten years competing at the highest level and two Olympic Games.
Carlin retires as one of Scotland’s most decorated Olympians, with two silver and two bronze medals from Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, alongside five world championship and six elite European medals.
Photo Credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.comHaving first discovered cycling after a football injury, Carlin began racing with Glasgow Riders, where his sprinting talent quickly emerged. He joined the Great Britain Cycling Team Senior Academy in 2016 and made an immediate impact, winning gold in the team sprint at the UEC European Championships in Montichiari. That same season he took silver at the elite Europeans in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, a velodrome that would become a recurring stage for many of his career highlights.
Over the following years he established himself as one of Britain’s leading sprinters, taking his first individual World Cup medal in 2017 and collecting silver in both the sprint and team sprint at the 2018 World Championships. Representing Scotland for the first time at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, he won silver in the individual sprint, beginning a medal-winning run that continued for the rest of his career.
Photo Credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.comCarlin went on to secure a series of podiums at European and world level before making his Olympic debut in Tokyo. There he won silver in the team sprint alongside Jason Kenny and Ryan Owens, and bronze in the individual sprint. Two years later he added three more British titles and another Commonwealth Games double, taking silver in the keirin and bronze in the sprint.
At the inaugural combined UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow in 2023, Carlin delighted home crowds with bronze in the individual sprint. A year later in Paris he repeated his Olympic achievements, winning team sprint silver with Hamish Turnbull and Ed Lowe and sprint bronze behind Harrie Lavreysen, sealing his place among Britain’s greats.
Photo Credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.comAnnouncing his decision, Carlin said:
“After over a decade representing Great Britain on the world stage, it’s time to officially close this chapter of my sporting career. It’s hard to put into words how proud I feel looking back. A young boy from Paisley, who worked to the bone chasing a dream and somehow ended up competing against the best in the world, standing on podiums and becoming Scotland’s third most decorated male Olympian.
“After Paris 2024 I stepped away from the high-performance bubble to focus on my recovery and figure out whether the hunger to go again for another Olympic cycle was there. Truth is, I was ready for change, and in this game if you’re not 100 per cent in, you’re not giving enough. To the incredible team around me at British Cycling, my coaches, support staff, mechanics and physio teams who put me back together more times than I can count, thank you.”
Photo Credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.comStephen Park CBE, performance director at British Cycling, praised Carlin’s influence. “Jack has been a stalwart in our men’s team sprint squad for almost a decade, playing a pivotal part in Great Britain’s success on international stages and the biggest stage of all, the Olympic Games. His resilience has always shone through, and he has set a fine example for young cyclists and Scots alike.”
Sir Jason Kenny, Carlin’s former teammate and later coach, added: “It was a pleasure to share the podium with Jack as a teammate and battle against him on the track. In Tokyo and Paris he was a crucial part of the team, and the medals would not have been possible without him. He has left a performance gap that will be difficult to fill.”
Away from the track, Carlin has become a prominent advocate for Scottish sport and is working with organisers of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games to inspire the next generation of riders. As he moves into life beyond elite competition, he says his focus will remain on helping develop cycling talent and promoting Scotland on the world stage.
