Finding Her Power

How a Custom Cycling AFO Helped GB Para-Cyclist Rebecca Newark Redefine Her Limits

When you meet Rebecca Newark, a 25-year-old para-cyclist from Windermere in the Lake District, UK, you’d never guess how much her right ankle has shaped the course of her athletic life. Born with bilateral Talipes (club foot), Rebecca grew up navigating casts, surgery, insoles, and years of bracing—yet nothing stopped her from throwing herself into high-level able-bodied sport.

“I never thought of myself as limited,” she says. “I just figured out how to make things work.”

But in her early twenties, everything she had learned to adapt around began to catch up with her.

A Turning Point

Although her left foot responded well to early casting, Rebecca’s right foot required surgery at just six months old, leaving her with a smaller calf muscle and reduced ankle mobility. As she reached adulthood, the strain became harder to work around.

“By 20, something just shifted,” she recalls. “It wasn’t just fatigue—it was my body telling me I couldn’t keep pushing the same way.”

Losing the ability to compete at able-bodied levels was a painful reality for someone whose identity had always been tied to sport. But that turning point also opened the door to para-cycling—a sport that would reconnect her to elite competition and give her a new path forward.

Today, she proudly represents Great Britain as a GB Para-Cyclist.

Why She Needed a Cycling-Specific Ankle Foot Orthosis (AFO)

As her ankle weakened, Rebecca eventually needed an Ankle Foot Orthosis (AFO) for daily walking. But riding at an elite level required something entirely different: a brace that could handle long training sessions, improve alignment, reduce pain, and prevent compensatory injuries.

“What I had before worked for walking,” she explains. “But elite cycling is another world. I needed something built for how I actually ride.”

Her search led her to the Re/Aktiv™ brace from Fabtech—sparking a collaboration that would change her training life.

Building a Brace That Could Keep Up

Working with Fabtech and Proactive, Rebecca underwent a detailed casting from ankle to knee, including over her cycling shoe. The team designed a cycling-specific AFO that attaches externally to the shoe, giving her proper alignment without compromising shoe fit.

She adapted almost immediately.

“Normally it takes weeks to settle into a brace,” Rebecca says. “I was riding outside within days. It felt natural right from the start.”

The custom device features a sleek carbon design and a BOA® adjustment system, letting her fine-tune the fit mid-ride.

Performance Gains She Can Feel

The AFO didn’t restore lost ankle motion—but it transformed how effectively she can use what she does have. Her coach immediately noticed improvements in her technique, especially her ability to ride out of the saddle, a movement she had long avoided.

“I didn’t realize how much I’d been compensating,” she says. “Now I feel balanced, strong, and stable—not worried about what my ankle is doing.”

She uses the brace for training six days a week and wears it comfortably during endurance sessions lasting more than three hours. A small early issue with the shoe interface was quickly fixed by the Leeds workshop team, and the brace has been rock-solid ever since.

Beyond the biomechanics, the custom AFO has had a profound emotional impact.

“It makes me feel like a real athlete again,” Rebecca says. 

She even laughs about finally having matching cycling shoes again, a small but meaningful detail after years of makeshift solutions.

Other riders—para and able-bodied alike—often ask about the sleek carbon device. “I love explaining it,” she says. “It’s pretty cool to be part of something that feels so cutting-edge.”

Looking Toward Los Angeles 2028

Rebecca has big aspirations ahead: climbing the international rankings and earning a spot at the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles. She’s also excited about continuing to refine her setup.

“I’m always thinking about how to improve things,” she says. “That’s the athlete mindset—if there’s even a 1% gain out there, I want to find it.”

For her, this AFO isn’t just a piece of equipment. It’s a key part of her identity, her training, and her future.