Laura Kenny confirms retirement as Britain's greatest ever female Olympian

LONDON -- Britain's most successful ever female Olympic athlete, Laura Kenny, on Monday announced she will not compete in the Paris Olympic Games and is retiring from cycling at the age of 31.

Kenny won five Olympic gold medals and a silver, claiming gold in the team pursuit and omnium events in London 2012, and repeating those triumphs in Rio four years later, before winning gold in the Madison and taking silver in the team pursuit in Tokyo.

She also won seven World Championship and 14 European titles in a glittering career.

Kenny gave birth to her second child last July, and speaking to the BBC on Monday, she said the time had come to stop riding competitively.

"I always knew deep down I would know when the right time was. I have had an absolute blast but now is the time for me to hang that bike up," she commented.

Kenny, who is married to fellow Olympic cyclist Jason Kenny, explained that "the sacrifices of leaving the children and your family at home are really quite big."

"More and more, I was struggling to do that. More people asking me what races was I doing, what training camps was I going on - I didn't want to go ultimately and that's what it came down to."

"I knew the minute I was getting those feelings. Once I said to [Jason], 'I don't think I want to ride a bike anymore', I started to feel relief."

"I was getting these hesitant feelings," Kenny admitted, adding that although she would have liked to retire after winning another gold medal, "it wasn't giving me the energy I wanted anymore."

"I wasn't thinking, 'I really want to go on and win one'. I was thinking, 'I really want to stay at home with the children," she said, explaining that her success in London "really did change my life."