Originally conceived to host the 2008 World Championships, delays with the BGZ Arena in Pruszkow, just outside Warsaw, meant that Manchester had to step in at short notice to host last year’s Worlds. But by September the track was ready to host the Under 23 and Junior European Track Championships and, by all accounts, did an excellent job.
On the 25th of March, though, the biggest cycling event ever to hit Poland comes to town as the Worlds begin at last.
Claimed to be the fastest low altitude track in the world, the organisers are expecting records to be broken. Despite this being a post-Olympic year - a traditional low point in terms of participation and competitiveness as far as the Worlds are concerned – the World Cup Series this last winter was extremely competitive (if you ignore the round in Cali, Colombia – as most of the competitors did) and the entry list
Terrestrial and satellite TV coverage in the UK is extensive – fuelled by the success of team GB at the previous two World Championships and in Beijing – and, while some of the British superstars (Hoy, Wiggins and Romero) will be absent from the competition, there are enough big names (Pendelton, Kenny and Cavendish – among many more) to keep the TV viewing figures high.
Once the racing kicks off, we’ll have daily results, reports, features, interviews and photographs, but to get you in the mood we’ve put together a full preview package, including –
Team GB at the Worlds – including an interview with teen sprint sensation and World Cup Gold medallist Jess Varnish