LeBron James is known as an avid cyclist, but where did his love of two wheels come from? The Los Angeles Lakers superstar recently sat down for a phone interview with Jason Gay of The Wall Street Journal to explain where it all started.
As most hoops fans know, James, now 33 years of age, is “just a kid from Akron.” The three-time champion says a bicycle represented freedom in that inner-city environment.
“Everything I do comes from my childhood, from my growing up, and what I feel was part of my success,” James, 33, told me in a telephone conversation.
“A bicycle, for me, was the only way to get around the city,” James continued. “If I wanted to meet some of my friends, travel across the city, go to school, play basketball—anything—the bicycle was the way I got around.”
“But that was just part of it,” James added. “A bicycle also represented freedom.”
“Me and my friends, when we got on our bikes, we would just ride,” James recalled. “Sometimes we would even get lost, because we’d be gone for so long. But there was a sense of joy and comfort. There was nothing that really could stop us. We felt like we were on top of the world.”
“It was a way of life,” James said in closing. “If you had a bike, it was a way to kind of let go and be free.”
For years, James held an annual Bikeathon in Akron. After a ride down South Main Street, the King would dish out hundreds of bikes to local kids.
Earlier this month, James opened his I Promise School for at-risk children in Akron. The school offers free uniforms, transportation, and, yep, bicycles. The cherry on top, so to speak, is guaranteed tuition to the University of Akron for those who complete the program.
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