'I slept in a horse barn' - Meet the track cyclist who funded his own way to the Paris Olympics

A horse barn, a caravan, and a bike box underneath the velodrome are just some of the places track sprinter Jean Spies slept on his journey to the Paris Olympics. 

The South African is one of few, if not the only track rider to have self-funded his way to the Games, relying on donations to get from competition to competition and earn his qualifying spot.

Now, at the age of 34, Spies is a two-time Olympian, thanks to what he says has been "eye-opening and eye-watering" support. 

"I've literally done this all on faith," he tells Cycling Weekly. "I'll put out GoFundMe pages and people donate to that. Then I have other people sending me an email or a message going, 'How much do you need?' and then they pop that into my account. 

"I've had days where I don't have money in my account to fill my car, and I've only got enough fuel in my car to get to the track, not to get home. I just drive it there, and miraculously, somebody's put enough in my account to get home."

Born in Johannesburg, the track sprinter has been racing internationally for the last eight years, travelling to UCI Nations Cup events, as well as Continental and World Championships. In that time, he says, he has "never received a cent" from his national federation, and estimates his yearly budget to be the same as Great Britain spends per rider for a weekend's racing abroad. 

"I don't get to stay in the official hotels because that’s something like £120 a night, plus another £30 for meals. I generally stay in Airbnbs or hotel bookings," Spies says. 

Other times, he has had to get creative with his accommodation. "I've slept in a horse barn. I've slept in a caravan in a remote field. I slept inside my bike box, actually, as well, underneath the velodrome, in the storage units. I do that sneakily if I really have to, because obviously the staff's not going to allow you to stay in after hours," he says. 

"I've had times when the Airbnb is on the 15th floor in some building and then you get there and the lift doesn't work and you have to carry your bike 15 stories up to get it to the room.

"I was literally sleeping on somebody's couch for the 2022 World Championships, and the results for me weren't great. I went and spoke to some of the riders, like Jeffrey Hoogland, and he literally said to me, 'If I had to do this as hard as what you do, there's no way I'd be riding a bike.' I take pride in that. I'm doing this in a way that there's a lot of respect from other riders." 

On his Olympic debut in Tokyo, Spies finished 27th in both the keirin and sprint events. His hopes this time aren't so much results-based, but rather to enjoy the experience, and give the best performances he can against better supported riders. He also has special motivation for racing well. 

"It will be the first time ever I get to race in front of my father and my sister at an international race," he says. "They're based in South Africa. I think my dad has been saving up for over a year to be able to come and do this." 

By his side, Spies will also have his manager, Brigitte Mileson, who has supported him since 2016, housing him while he prepared in the UK for the Olympics, at London's Lee Valley Velodrome. Private hire use of the facility costs hundreds of pounds an hour, "so I just use the general, public drop-in sessions," the South African explains. 

"Any Tom, Dick and Harry can rock up on the day, you don't know what's going to happen. But for me it’s kind of just make do and try and get the job done."

Make do and get the job done – that's the mantra that has accompanied Spies throughout his career. After years of scraping by, sleeping in unusual places and worrying about money, the 34-year-old has managed to keep an unyielding positivity. Now, he goes into his second Games with optimism, and a better night's rest.

There's no horse barn for Spies in Paris, nor a caravan, nor a bike box. No, this time the 34-year-old has the same hand as the other athletes, put up in one of the Olympics' official hotels, just a five-minute walk from the velodrome. 

"There are days when it's unnecessarily hard, and unnecessarily difficult. But it's one of those where I feel that there's a reason why I'm doing this, and there's a purpose for it," he says. 

"If I wasn't supposed to do it, all these doors would be completely shut. I love what I do. I love the sport. It doesn't matter which discipline. So I'm definitely going to keep doing it as long as I possibly can."