Neil was born in Aberdeen and now lives in Altrincham.
After narrowly missing out on the 100m and 200m finals in athletics, Neil decided that he needed a change in his sporting career. Describing himself as a life-long cycling fan, Neil was introduced to the competitive element of the sport at the Manchester Velodrome in 2008. He thrived on the high speed and high adrenaline of the sport, joining the Para-Cycling team in April 2009.
Shortly afterwards, Neil entered his first major international competition at the 2009 BT Paralympic World Cup and the Manchester Velodrome. Neil, piloted by Dave Readle, won two silver medals. Since then, Neil has represented Great Britain at two World Championships, winning four gold medals and breaking two world records.
With his training base in Manchester, Neil is a keen supporter of Aberdeen FC and cites Mark Cavendish as his sporting hero.
In 2006, Neil graduated from the University of Aberdeen with a Bachelor’s degree in Physics. He won the Aberdeen Sports Person of the Year for his achievements in 2009.
Neil has a congenital eye condition, Retinitis Pigmentosa.