An Olympic designer at the heart of British success

Stuart Burgess has helped to design bikes for the British Olympic Cycling Team for the last ten years. He was brought up in a non-Christian home, but came to faith over 30 years ago during his first year at university.

In an interview with en, Stuart spoke about his experiences of working with the Olympic Cycling Team, and Christians in sport in general. Stuart has worked with Team GB for ten years. When asked what it is like to work in that environment, he said: ‘My involvement has been to lead the design of the chain transmission drive for three Olympics: Rio, Tokyo, and Paris.

‘It’s very exciting building up to each Olympics – there is the pressure of getting the technology ready in time, but then the excitement of seeing it perform in Olympic races. To see the bikes we worked on win gold medals and break world records is quite a special feeling!

‘One of the best experiences is working in the Team GB bike workshops surrounded by incredible bike parts and testing equipment – that is an engineering paradise! Another unexpected bonus is using the same canteen as the cyclists. Not only can you eat with some famous riders, but you also get to eat incredibly nutritious food!’

'I believe the Biblical worldview helps people to be creative and confident in their work.’

Stuart’s work has strengthened his belief that sport and peak physical performance present clear evidence for intelligent design by God. He spoke about how that belief impacts upon his work:

‘My faith has a big impact on the confidence I have in my work and also my team. I believe that humans are made in God’s image and, therefore, I believe that everyone is born with great potential for creativity. I also believe that God can amplify that gift if we ask Him.

‘For example, Exodus 35 describes how God gave men and women creative gifts for designing and making the tabernacle building. When managing my design team, I encouraged each person to believe that they can create very innovative solutions.

‘Invention has played a big role in our work. For example, for the Rio Olympics, we decided to do the opposite of what the traditional bicycle rule book stated – we maximised chainwheel size instead of minimising it. For the Tokyo Olympics we minimised the chain pitch – something that really surprised other teams. I believe the Biblical worldview helps people to be creative and confident in their work.’

Opportunities to speak of Christ

When asked the impact of his faith on the other members of the team, Stuart spoke about some of the most common conversations he has been able to have:

‘The design of the human body is a good talking point because everyone is aware of the incredible capabilities of Olympic athletes. I believe all humans are fearfully and wonderfully made, but with top athletes this becomes particularly clear.

‘I have found most people are open to the idea that humans are special and more than just another type of animal. I often speak about intelligent design in nature with my colleagues.

‘Over the last 40 years I have been surprised how many academics either believe in intelligent design or are sympathetic to the idea. The media give a false impression of intelligent design being non-scientific when, in actual fact, it is believed by many engineers and scientists.’

It is becoming increasingly difficult for Christians to become top-level athletes without having to compromise on aspects on faith. However, Stuart highlighted a recent example which shows that rewards do sometimes come for Christians, even in sport, when they put their faith first:

‘There is no doubt that it is getting harder for Christians to be a top-level sportsman. However, it is not impossible. There are teams and sports that will accommodate Christians who have certain principles they want to follow.

‘For example, the Scottish International rugby player Euan Murray was allowed to miss Sunday games after coming to an agreement with the teams he played for. It is important to attempt compromise solutions.’

Stuart has recently helped publish a new book, The Gift of Sport. It can be purchased from Day One Christian Ministries for £25, and Stuart gave it a brief overview:

‘We wrote the book to explain how sport is a gift from God that can give great joy as well as health benefits. Even though God has given mankind skills primarily to be able to carry out work activities like building, I have no doubt those skills are also given to enjoy recreations like sport.’