Jaymie Mart

Feature writer/fashion columnist

Tuesday 18 September 2012

Sports nutritionist and former UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) mountain biker;

Custom byline text:

Elizabeth McMeekin

Born: October 18, 1980; Died: September 14, 2012

Jaymie Michelle Mart, who has died aged 31, was a champion mountain bike racer and sports nutritionist. Described as a pioneer in women's mountain bike racing, she was a seven-times Elite Female Scottish Downhill Mountain Bike Champion and the silver medallist in the 2010 World Mountain Bike Masters Championships.

As one of the most successful female racers in the country Jaymie was a pivotal part of the mountain biking community within the UK and around the world. Since 2011, through her business Athleat Nutrition, she had been providing the sporting world, including fellow cyclists, with nutritional programmes. More recently she had been acting as The Herald and Sunday Herald's cycling team's expert nutritionist, with her advice published in a series of articles in The Herald Magazine. Described by those who knew her as "a whirlwind", "fun-loving", and "stunningly beautiful", Jaymie was renowned for her determination in life and in competitive sport. She also had huge personal magnetism, said to be the reason behind both her success in business and the fact that she had so many friends around the world.Born in Penrith, Cumbria, she was a keen sportswoman from a young age. She attended Beaconside Primary School and then Ullswater Community College, where a friend introduced her to the world of BMX bike riding. Jaymie then discovered her talent for mountain bike riding, which she took up at around the age of 16She was one of the first females to compete in the sport, which at the time was still in its fledgling stages in the UK. Her brother Adam remembers the beginnings of her mountain bike career. "There's a running joke in the family that she would always come back and say 'I've done really well, I was third' and of course we would ask her how many people were competing and she would say 'three'."In 2000 she moved to Scotland to study Sports Science at Aberdeen University. Throughout her four years there she continued to compete in mountain bike championships, securing more wins, including twice the British Universities Champion, in 2002 and 2003. Her sporting expertise was further acknowledged when Aberdeen University awarded her the Full Blue in 2004, the highest sporting accolade that can be given within the British University system.At the age of 22 she moved to Innerleithen in the Borders, where many of her close friends in the mountain biking community were based. She wanted to be close to the sporting activities, the wildlife and the lifestyle that she loved.She earned the nickname The Barbadian Bullet, after successful racing for the Barbados mountain bike team. Her mother Paula was born and raised in Barbados and as a result Jaymie had dual nationality. As more cycling success followed she was able to gain sponsorship from brands such as Trek and Fox Racing Clothing.In 2006 she graduated with an MSc in Human Nutrition, with Sports Specialisation, from Glasgow University. In early 2011 she set up Athleat Nutrition. She has also worked as the nutrition and relations manager for the Lucozade Sport Science Team. Recently she had also been lecturing on sport nutrition at universities around Scotland.Aside from mountain biking she was a keen sportswoman whose achievements included running the 2008 London Marathon and climbing Jebel Toubkal in Morocco, the highest peak in North Africa, in 2011. She also attended the north of England Centre of Excellence for Hockey and represented the county of Cumbria in the sport.She is survived by her mother Paula, her father David and her brother Adam. She is also survived by her mother's partner John Shepley along with his daughters Emma and Rachel.

Contextual targeting label:

Block list

Commenting & Moderation

We moderate all comments on HeraldScotland on either a pre-moderated or post-moderated basis. If you're a relatively new user then your comments will be reviewed before publication and if we know you well then your comments will be subject to moderation only if other users or the moderators believe you've broken the rules, which are available here.

Moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours. Please be patient if your posts are not approved instantly.

Jaymie Mart

Commenting & Moderation

MOST READ

SPONSORED LINKS

MOST COMMENTED