the World Cup for the sprint in 2004, winning the World Cup event in Manchester. At the 2004 Summer Olympics, she finished sixth in the time trial and ninth in the 200 m sprint. Pendleton won her first major medal with gold in the sprint at the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships. She became the third British woman to become a cycling world champion in 40 years. At the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, she won silver in the 500 m time trial and gold in the sprint. At the 2007 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, she won the team sprint with Shanaze Reade, the individual gold in the sprint, and a third gold in the keirin. She crowned the year by being named Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year for 2007, becoming the first cyclist to win the award in its 20-year history. Pendleton was also voted Sports Journalists' Association's sportswoman of the year for 2007. During her build-up to the Olympics she won two gold medals at the 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in the sprint, and the team sprint, again with Reade. She was also second in the keirin. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Pendleton won the gold medal in the sprint. She retained her title in the sprint at the 2009 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Pruszków. Each sprint was so closely matched it required several photos, leaving Pendleton emotional but victorious over her Dutch opponent, Willy Kanis. At the 2011 UCI Track Cycling World Championships Pendleton won a silver in the team sprint, a bronze medal in the sprint and finished seventh in the keirin. Partnering Jess Varnish, Pendleton won the team sprint in her only event at the British Championships. At the 2011 European Track Championships Pendleton won the team sprint and keirin titles, but only came eighth in the sprint. In February 2012 Pendleton and Varnish set a new world team sprint record of 32.754 seconds, beating Kaarle McCulloch and Anna Meares of Australia at the Track World Cup in the London Velodrome. In the sprint and the keirin Pendleton came 4th and 5th respectively. In Pendleton's final 2012 UCI Track Cycling World Championships she won the sprint, her sixth title. She fell in the first heat of the semi-final against Meares. In the second heat Meares was relegated for going outside her lane. In the decider Pendleton won in