One of Australia's most decorated cyclists, Kalle McCulloch, has announced his retirement from a 15-year track cycling career. McCulloch's illustrious career includes four world titles, an Olympic bronze medal, three Commonwealth Games gold medals, 21 Oceania titles, and 15 national championship wins.

"My medals and all of my accomplishments are amazing and I will treasure them for the rest of my life," McCulloch said in a press release issued by AusCycling on Friday.

"But it is my efforts that I hope people will remember. I wasn't the most talented athlete, but I was the hardest working and most tenacious. If you asked me how high I wanted people to jump, I would jump a little higher."

As a junior, McCulloch switched from track and field to cycling and joined the local St. George Cycling Club. She quickly rose through the ranks in national and international competitions. The highlight of her junior career was a World Championships bronze medal in her debut for Australia in 2006.

"I didn't know what I was doing. But I was out there trying. But the support from the club, the New South Wales Institute of Sport, and the Australian Cycling Team was tremendous. It just goes to show what support can do for a motivated young man."

McCulloch says he was immediately attracted to cycling and almost immediately knew he wanted to continue in the sport, even as a junior rider.

Three years later, in 2009, McCulloch partnered with Anna Meares to win the first of three consecutive team sprint world titles. The pair also won gold in team sprint at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, and McCulloch made her Olympic debut at the 2012 London Olympics, where she and Meares defeated Ukraine to win bronze in team sprint.

"The period from 2009 to 2012 was so great. We didn't lose for a long time. So, especially in the last 6-8 months leading up to the Olympics, the expectations were so high that I put too much pressure on myself," McCulloch said.

"But Anna and I were really tough as a team. We were formidable because we went to training first, we left together at the end, we dotted all the 'i's and crossed all the 't's"

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"I think we had everything we could look for in terms of the best combination for the team. That's why we were so successful."

"I knew how hard she was working and I didn't want to let her down and I don't think she wanted to let me down either.

Meares retired from professional racing in 2016, and McCulloch joined Stephanie Morton in Team Sprint. They won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, where McCulloch also won gold in the individual time trial.

"I was so proud to win and celebrate it and do a victory lap myself. I had never been able to do that before. Walking into the crowd and seeing my own family still gives me goosebumps.

McCulloch won his fourth career rainbow jersey in the team sprint with Morton at the 2019 World Championships, as well as a keirin silver medal and time trial bronze.

The pair won silver in the team sprint at the 2020 World Championships. Morton retired from racing after the 2020 season, so Australia will miss the team sprint at the Tokyo Olympics. McCulloch represented Australia in the Keirin and Sprint, his second Olympic appearance.

"I am incredibly proud of myself for making it through Tokyo because a severe chronic back injury I suffered in late 2019 really derailed my campaign in Tokyo. I was dealing with pain every day leading up to Tokyo, so just getting to Tokyo was an incredible accomplishment," she said.

"And what I have learned over time in my career is that success doesn't always look like a gold medal. Sometimes it's about beating your personal best or finishing what you started."

McCulloch thanked all those who have helped her achieve her goals throughout her 15-year career in track cycling.

"There are so many people I would like to think about and I don't think it's fair to name a few. People who have had a huge impact on my career, I know who they are," she said. [Without their support, I could not have continued to run at the highest level for 15 years. Like the riders, the Australian cycling team we have to show up every day. They, too, have their peaks and valleys with us. They can feel our pain and celebrate with us at the same time. Thank you."