HOTSHOT cyclist Lewis Oliva crowned a hectic month by retaining his British keirin title.

The 25-year-old Old Monmothian bounced back from having his unique carbon fibre racing shoes stolen from his car to win World Cup bronze in Belarus last month.

Then days later he won selection for his third Commonwealth Games, before burning up the track in Manchester to take national gold.

Oliva had his racing shoes and kit stolen in his British Cycling kit bag in Cardiff, and girlfriend and Olympic champion Ciara Horne tweeted an appeal for their return.

The shoes are specially moulded to Oliva’s feet and vital equipment at the top elite level, so the Wye Valley man was delighted when a plumber found them the next day dumped in a back alley less than a mile from the scene of the crime near the Heath hospital.

Oliva tweeted: "Thank you so much to all those @swpolice, great community spirit! Now I know how happy Cinderella felt after her shoe was returned!"

Then the Welsh Cycling star was off to Minsk to race in the World Cup, where he raced home third in the keirin final behind the Canadian and Dutch cyclists.

Back home, the medical student learnt he’d won Welsh selection for the track sprint in April’s Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

"This is my third Commonwealth Games and obviously it’s really exciting to be named in the team travelling to Australia," said Oliva.

"Training has been going really well and I look forward to mixing it up in a few months.

The Commonwealth Games presents a huge opportunity to top this season off. It’s always extra special to pull on the Welsh jersey, a proud moment for any Welshman."

Then with barely a moment to draw breath, he was off to the Manchester velodrome for the National Track Championships, where he led from a lap out to successfully defend his men’s keirin title, narrowly holding off the challenge of Joe Truman in the home straight in a thrilling final.

And for good measure, he also landed silver in the sprint behind Jack Carlin.