Sciatica ended my rowing career, but I'm just getting started in cycling

Dom Jackson joined an exclusive cadre of riders in May. Only seven British riders have won the Rás Tailteann - an annual international cycling stage race, held in Ireland - in its 69-year history. The Foran CT rider became part of that exclusive group, winning the five-day race outright after a superb display. That’s a big achievement for any rider, but given Jackson had been racing for just four seasons, having previously competed in a completely different sport, his victory was all the more extraordinary.

“At the start of every year, the team manager Tom Quaid asked for everyone’s goals for the year. The Rás was top of the list by a country mile,” Jackson tells Cycling Weekly. “It was the one thing that I had set my sights on from the end of last year.” Now 26, Jackson’s path into cycling has been an unusual one. He grew up in Kingston-on-Thames and was part of a Sea Scouts group as a child, spending much of his spare time in kayaks and canoes. His interest in watersports saw him take up rowing while at school, but he did not excel straight away.

“I used to cycle about half an hour into school every day,” he says. “I remember how during the first two or three years of rowing, I was more fussed about how quickly I could cycle home than the rowing itself,” he remembers. “But then towards the end of my school career, I hit puberty, grew quite a bit and actually got really pretty good at rowing.” While studying for A-levels, Jackson was selected by GB selectors for the Coupe de la Jeunesse races. “It is essentially a European Championships for rowing, but for juniors,” he explains. Encouraged by the experience, he resolved to knuckle down to the sport.

The school coach Neil Double recognised Jackson’s talent and encouraged him to try for the under-18 Lightweight 5,000m indoor rowing record in February 2016. The fast-developing teenager duly broke it, and went on to take bronze at the Junior World Championships and then fourth in the lightweight men’s pair at the under-23 Worlds in 2017. The following year, however, while studying at Newcastle University, his rowing progress was brought to a sudden halt when he picked up a back injury in the gym. He limped on with the resulting sciatica for a year and a half, but it essentially ended his rowing journey.

“I couldn’t sit in a chair for more than 20 or 30 minutes before having to stretch, get up, walk around,” he explains. “I was doing all kinds of crazy things to get three hours’ sleep, then same again, get up and do some nerve flossing or stretching, and then another few hours’ sleep. Just rinse and repeat.” Jackson found that running helped his injury, but the sport failed to hold his interest during Covid, so he switched to cycling – albeit with caution to protect his back. “At first I found that if it sat a bit funny on the saddle, I was able to ride,” he says. “That summer it was so sunny and I was just really loving it.”

Progressing quickly, Jackson joined Kingston Wheelers in London (UK), started Zwifting during the next wave of Covid restrictions, and became addicted to improving his numbers. Getting ever fitter and faster, he began racing in the spring of 2021, and with decent results from the off, he was soon picked up by London team Foran CT. In April 2023 he travelled to Ireland with the team and rode the Kerry Group Rás Mumhan, winning the third stage and taking fifth overall – not bad for his second stage race. Upon returning, he ran the London Marathon in a very decent 2:43.17. Less than a month later, he was on the start line of his first Rás Tailteann. He finished seventh overall, and relished the experience.

“The Rás is huge,” he enthuses. “In the UK it’s seen as the stage race to win. It has so much history that it almost doesn’t need an introduction, because everyone in cycling knows about it. For lots of British riders, it’s the first time we witness crowds on the sides of the streets cheering for us, wanting us to do well.” He resolved to return and try to win.

Jackson describes himself as “very competitive” and someone who goes all-in. He booked himself an Airbnb in Sierra Nevada, Spain, in the build-up to this year’s Rás, spending a month training at altitude. “I was by myself because I wanted to be in the best shape possible,” he explains, “but a month in your own head–” he pauses. “There were definitely a few days when I had a bit of a mental wobble.” He stuck it out, fending off the what-if thoughts about how an inopportune puncture or missed break could undo all his preparation, and the rest is history.

Jackson was third on stage one, took over the yellow jersey the following day, and with the help of the team, defended it until the final stage. The win was never a foregone conclusion; in fact, it was the closest ever edition, with three riders locked on precisely the same time. “I went into the Rás with the attitude that I’ll just do as well as I possibly can,” he says, “so whatever the outcome, if I’d done my best I could be happy. To finish the last day still in yellow, it made all of the sacrifices, all of the training, all of the nutrition stuff instantly worth it.” The big win instantly raised Jackson’s profile on the domestic racing scene. “The reaction afterwards was amazing,” he says. “At local races, and elsewhere in the UK, people I don’t particularly know were coming up and saying, ‘Oh, really well done to you and your team over in Ireland’. It was just really lovely.”

A month after his big win in Ireland, Jackson finished 13th in the National Championship road race – best of those not on a professional or pro development team – and just two seconds off Ben Swift of Ineos Grenadiers. In July he was eighth in the 1.2-ranked GP de Pérenchies in France, and more recently he went to the French Alps on holiday and showed further progression. “I put out my best numbers ever going up Alpe d’Huez,” he says. “I’ve got the fastest time there this year, and 25th fastest all time.” On 3 September he also set a new record for the Box Hill climb, one of the most competitive segments on Strava, averaging 33.7kph (20.9mph) to cover the 2.2km in four minutes and five seconds, smashing the mark of Q36.5 pro Rory Townsend by eight seconds.

It’s eight years since that indoor world rowing achievement and now, aged 26, he’s still breaking records, still pushing his own boundaries. Having earned a sports psychology and biology degree in Newcastle, he runs his own coaching business. Like many riders in their mid-20s, he feels he is at a crossroads in his life. “I would love to get paid to ride my bike. Otherwise I’ll have to get myself a big boy job,” he reflects. “Something that pays well, working in the City or something, and then continuing to cycle but doing fewer hours – perhaps ride as a domestique at Foran for the next younger rider who’s coming through.”

Does he have a plan, something he hopes could yet secure an international contract? “I’ve been trying for the Zwift Academy,” he says. “I’ve been ticking off the workouts and will only fi nd out if I’ve made it through the fi rst round, halfway through October. But so far, so good.” With past winners such as Jay Vine and Neve Bradbury breaking through this way, Jackson seems exceptionally well placed to follow suit.