Stone was chosen within the Workforce Scotland squad for the Video games in Birmingham final month after simply three years as an elite rider.
Her background is in athletics, the place she competed for Inverness Harriers, earlier than partaking in a UK Sport talent transfer in 2019 which highlighted monitor biking as a possible choice.
Aviemore bike owner Ellie Stone is eager to take in as a lot expertise as she will at her first Commonwealth Video games.
It’s a comparable path to the one fellow Scotland team-mate Lauren Bell took to hitch the programme. The 2 additionally attended Forres Academy collectively.
Ellie Stone has been chosen within the Workforce Scotland biking squad. Stone would be the pilot for Paralympic legend Aileen McGlynn, who has seven Paralympic medals – three gold – to her identify in addition to 4 Commonwealth ones for Scotland.
“I didn’t know as early as most individuals; I wasn’t chosen within the first spherical (of picks for the Video games) however I came upon per week earlier than it was introduced I might be going,” she stated.
“I really feel sorry for everybody else – I needed to strive hold it in for per week and it was onerous. Everybody else needed to do it for weeks.
“I hadn’t given up on it. I wasn’t chosen for a solo place however I noticed I had this opportunity – it was very 50-50 as I used to be questioning ‘am I coaching for one thing that isn’t going to occur? Fortunately it went my approach.”
It has been a promising begin to 2022 for Stone. She gained the keirin and the 500m time-trial on the Nationwide Monitor Championships in March, forward of Workforce Scotland colleagues Bell, Iona Moir and Lusia Steele. The trio then teamed as much as end third within the crew dash.
Her expertise with tandem-cycling totals lower than six weeks however having a crash course with a seasoned winner like McGlynn has introduced her on leaps and bounds.
“She’s fairly cool – she instructed me it was most likely going to be her final Video games and it’ll be my first,” added Stone.
“I began tandem along with her about 4 weeks in the past, so it’s been a primary for lots of issues.
“I’ve been making an attempt to be taught every little thing from her and she or he’s really easy to journey with. I first tried tandem two weeks earlier than I acquired on along with her, simply so I had some type of thought what I used to be doing.
“I used to be on with my gymnasium coach and it was so wobbly, as neither of us actually had an thought methods to journey. When she got here on the again I used to be like ‘wow, we are able to go in a straight line!’
“It’s apparent how good she is. I appreciated it much more.”
