DOUBLE Olympic gold-winning cyclist Victoria Pendleton has revealed her twin brother has died.
She paid tribute to Alex Pendleton, who passed away this morning aged 42.
On Instagram she wrote: "If you know me then you likely know my twin brother Alex, I just wanted to let you know that this morning Alex sadly passed away after an epic battle against an aggressive brain tumour.
"He will be painfully missed by many.
"Rest in peace my kind, brave twinnie, you will forever be in our hearts."
The pair grew up in Bedfordshire with their older sister Nicola, their amateur cyclist father Max and mother Pauline.
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Nine-time world champion Victoria won gold in Beijing in 2008 and at London 2012.
It comes after Victoria previously revealed how close she was to suicide after suffering from "severe depression".
The Olympic champion had to abandon a charity climb up Mount Everest in May 2018 for medical reasons having spent 18 months training.
She admitted that her mental health rapidly deteriorated soon after arriving home – the anxiety this caused, coupled with the end of her marriage, triggered a deep depression.
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She exclusively told The Sun: “It was an accumulation of so many factors that had got on top of me.
“Everything in my personal life was out of control – there was this huge sense of loss from losing my sporting career, my marriage had broken down, the hypoxia…
"Each of those things individually might have been manageable, but together, I didn’t have enough to give. I wasn’t coping and I spiralled down and down and down into a place I didn’t think I could get out of, for about five months.
"I felt very frustrated because I was like: ‘I’m an Olympic champion – I should be able to get out of this myself.’”
You’re Not Alone
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You're Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
- Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk
- Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123
- Movember, www.uk.movember.com
- Anxiety UK www.anxietyuk.org.uk, 03444 775 774 Monday-Friday 9.30am-10pm, Saturday/Sunday 10am-8pm
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