Nirjala Tamrakar Wright - aka "Mountain Queen” - The Mountain Biking National Champion of Nepal from 2001 to 2012!

<p><span class="im">Nirjala, the "Mountain Queen," was born in Kumari Pati in Kathmandu, Nepal. Nirjala is one of two children, with a younger brother who is a keen road biker. Nirjala started out in her late teens as a professional model. For this career, she was required to keep fit, and it was through going to the gym that she got into first bodybuilding and then cycling.<br /> <br /> In 2001, some friends suggested she try her luck in a mountain bike race, The Himalayan Mountain Bike Race Series, and she won the National Women's Category. This proved to be her inspiration to leave modelling and pursue a professional career as a cyclist for the Nepal National Team.<br /> <br /> Nirjala's rise to fame and to working as a professional athlete for the Nepal National Team was beset by the difficulty that arose from the patriarchy-based society in which she grew up. Although she competed at a national and international level and at a higher level than the majority of Nepalese male riders, she was marginalized by her own national cycling association, which found sponsors and endorsements for her male counterparts. Despite this, she continued and found her own sponsors (like Qoroz Professional Titanium Bikes).<br /> <br /> <strong>Nirjala's Notable Achievements:</strong></span></p> <ul> <li>First Nepalese Woman to cycle 22 days from Lhasa (Tibet) to Everest Base Camp (North) to Kathmandu (Nepal)</li> <li>First female to Win (2 times) the Highest Altitude, Endurance race in the World, "The Yak Attack"</li> <li>First Nepalese Female to win a cycle race in the UK</li> <li>First Nepalese Cycle Athlete to compete in a UCI World Cup Finals</li> <li>First Nepalese Cycle Athlete to compete in South Asian Games</li> <li>First Nepalese Woman to complete a cycle race of the Annapurna Circuit</li> <li>Recipient of the - "Tamrakar Award Fund" - Ugrachandi Award (Nepal)</li> <li>Participated in the mountain biking competition at the 16th Asian Games in China in November 2010</li> </ul> <p><span class="im">She is now a keynote spea