My name is Katie Archibald and I’ve been addicted to cycling for six years now.

It started cas- ually; I’d ride my bike at the weekends and on holidays, you know just recreational use.

I took it a bit further when I started racing at Highland Games, but I convinced myself it was just a hobby, I could stop whenever I wanted.

Then I met some people that were into a lot heavier stuff, and well, they were really cool. They had a van and the men shaved their legs and at that point I knew I was in deep.

I started racing all over the country just to get that next high and one win led to another until I was given a place on the British Cycling Olympic Programme. Now I don’t think I’ll ever stop.

Conveniently, for the past two years I’ve been putting “professional cyclist” down as my job title whilst my father insists on telling people I don’t work. The argument that I work 24/7 (one hideously self-righteous argument) doesn’t float because he volunteers in my profession on a Sunday morning. If you’re curious my mother loves me unconditionally but that’s a separate therapy session.

Why am I telling you? Because joy of all joys I’m going to catalogue the next 11 months, my “road to Rio”, here in the Sunday Herald, hurrah!

Here’s a bit of background: I’m from Milngavie but now live in Manchester, the base of the British Cycling programme. Myself and four others (Laura Trott, Joanna Rowsell, Elinor Barker and Ciara Horne) make up the women’s team pursuit squad. Team Pursuit is the Olympic event we are all training for; it’s a track cycling event that involves four riders covering 4km as fast as possible. And if you counted right, you’ll realise there are five of us in the team, which always leaves one rider “really proud to be supporting the team” on the sidelines. I shouldn’t joke but one, the rest of the team are English and Welsh so unlikely to read this, and two, what else is there to do but joke about things that terrify you.

Good background stories include being in the team that broke the women’s team pursuit world record in 2014 and then winning the 2014 world championships.

Less good background stories include losing our world record and world title to Australia at the 2015 championships in March. The weirdest part was that GB women hadn’t lost a team pursuit in four years and I just kind of assumed we never would. In the lead up to any big race the press would ask: “Don’t you think you’re due to lose sooner or later?” and yet they all seemed so oddly surprised when it happened.

Eventually the sentiment that went round was well, now it’s out of the way. And you know what, it is now out of the way and I’m pretty sure we’re ready to kick ass – and all the other American phrases that mean “win” – this season.

Our first team outing this year (the track season runs roughly from September to March) will be the European Championships in Switzerland next month. I would predict our main rivals being Germany and Russia but as we head closer to Olympic year you start to see nations pull things out of the woodwork so I wouldn’t bet my expensive bike on it.

Since it’s not a full international field (our usual tete-a-tetes are with Canada and Australia), it’s a chance to gently test the waters. It would be nice to put down a fast time but if it doesn’t happen I’ll be ready to explain that we are in a certain training phase etc. Of course, team select- ion is the first hurdle.

Before that though is an individual glory hunt at the British national championships. It’s bizarre but fun that the girls I train with every day and share a common goal with (winning the women’s team pursuit at Rio) often turn into direct rivals.

The best example was at the Commonwealth Games where Laura Trott, Elinor Barker and I were on the points race podium (in that order) after trying to outdo one another for 100 laps. The next week we were back training together, giving tips on start techniques and the likes.

I’m defending national individual pursuit champion so that’s probably my biggest target of the weekend. The race will be over by the time this goes to print so check the results and send me your commiserations or congratulations, outcome depending.*

*Katie qualified fastest in the individual pursuit and looked on course to defend her title in the final but British team-mate Laura Trott turned the contest on its head in the final five laps, to triumph in 3:32.759 to Archibald’s 3:33.065.