Dates confirmed for 2016 UCI Track Worlds in London

On the eve of this year's Track World Championships in Paris, British Cycling and the UCI have confirmed that next year's edition in London will be held from 2-6 March at Lee Valley VeloPark in London, scene of Team GB's dominance at the 2012 Olympic Games.

British Cycling members will be given priority to buy tickets for the championships, which will be sold via Ticketmaster, but anyone elsewho may want to attend is asked to register their interest now on the event's website.

Jonny Clay, cycle sport and membership director at British Cycling, said: “The appetite for top-level international racing has rarely been higher in this country and it is with great excitement that we confirm the dates for the 2016 UCI World Track Cycling Championships.

“Becoming world champion in any year is a landmark moment in an athlete’s career but in 2016, competitors in London will also be fighting for the chance to head to the Rio Olympics marked as the best in the world.

“Having the event in London allows the Great Britain Cycling Team to make a statement of intent to the world’s best ahead of Rio 2016, while also providing the British public with the opportunity to give the team their backing.

“The major events we have delivered over the last decade have rightly been regarded as world class and I’m certain that the 2016 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in this iconic venue will be the best yet.”

UCI president, Brian Cookson, added: “The UCI, organisers and TV broadcasters worked hand in hand to find the best possible dates for our track marquee event, taking into account the international sporting calendar.

"One year after the UCI Track Cycling World Championships at the new Velodrome National in Saint-Quentin, the best riders will compete in another world class venue, the Lee Valley VeloPark velodrome, London.

"We still have vivid memories of the track cycling raced there during the London 2012 Olympics, and next year’s UCI World Championships promise to be another great event.”