Lincolnshire’s Cadwell Park will see the under-23 men’s, elite women’s and elite men’s British time trial medals decided when the British Cycling National Road Championships commence on Thursday 25 June.
With two out of three 2014 champions absent, the door is open for new champions to be crowned and former winners to regain the coveted British champions jersey.
The contenders
Under-23 men - start time 12noon
Welshman Scott Davies stormed to a popular home win in 2014, head and shoulders above the opposition on a tough South Wales course.
And the Carmarthen-born rider is a late entry for Lincolnshire, leaving 2014 silver medallist Owain Doull with another battle on his hands if he is to grasp the under-23 title that has so far eluded him.
Doull’s Team Wiggins squad mate Jon Dibben is also hotly tipped – a time trial and track pursuit specialist who has yet to make his mark on the under-23 British time trial podium.
The talented Tao Geoghegan-Hart is another potential winner and is in good form this season, runner up in the youth classification in May’s Amgen Tour of California following a podium at the under-23 Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
An Post Chain Reaction’s Alistair Slater is another podium prospective in Lincolnshire, the 22-year-old having recently represented Great Britain Cycling Team at the UCI Under 23 Nations’ Cup Course de la Paix.
Matt Gibson has impressed with his time trialling ability as a junior, finishing 10th at the UCI Road World Championships in Spain last year. The 18-year-old will ride the time trial in Lincolnshire as part of the 100%ME outfit.
Under-23 men's time trial start list
Elite women - start time 1.30pm
The stage is set for a new British champion following the retirement of 2014 gold medallist Emma Pooley.
Like Davies in the under-23 event, Pooley was in a league of her own on the tough Celtic Manor course a year ago, with Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International’s Katie Archibald taking silver.
Archibald will have a fight on her hands, with key rivals coming from within her own team ranks, most notably from 2014 bronze medallist Dame Sarah Storey, who is in fine form this season with a solo win at the Cheshire Classic and Paralympic world titles on the track.
Former junior world time trial champion Elinor Barker is also a key threat, the Matrix Fitness rider also a multiple world champion on the track.
Archibald herself tips another Pearl Izumi and Great Britain Cycling Team squad mate for a good ride in Lincolnshire; citing Ciara Horne as one to watch in the 33.6-kilometre test against the clock.
Elite women's time trial start list
Elite men - start time 3.30pm
Three-time national champion Alex Dowsett has the chance to equal Stuart Dangerfield’s all-time record of four elite men’s national time trial titles in Lincolnshire.
Bronze medallist despite illness last year, Dowsett himself is wary of his form following physiological changes resulting from his hour record preparations earlier in the year. However the 26-year-old from Maldon remains the hot favourite for the title.
In the absence of champion Sir Bradley Wiggins and following the late announcement that 2014 runner-up Geraint Thomas will miss the competition, Dowsett's chief rival is likely to be time trial specialist Matt Bottrill.
Riding for the drag2zero.com outfit, Bottrill has graced the podium five times since 2000, collecting silver in 2013.
Elite men's time trial start list
The course
The time trial course for the 2015 championships serves up an interesting twist on typical testing courses, splitting the action between the open roads of Lincolnshire and the more swooping technical tarmac of the Cadwell Park motor racing venue.
Built in a steep-sided valley, Cadwell Park exploits the topography to make a circuit that will be as challenging for Britain’s best time triallists as it is for the country’s top motorcycle and car racers.
The elite men will race against the clock over three laps of the main circuit whilst the women and under-23 men will compete over two laps of the same course giving total race distances of 28 miles (44.8 kilometres) and 21 miles (33.6 kilometres) respectively.
How to follow the event
- Live reporting on the British Cycling website from 11am covering the under-23 men’s and elite women’s and men’s time trials.
- Live video stream on the British Cycling Events YouTube channel - home of British Cycling’s event videos - from 2pm of the elite women’s and men’s time trials. Subscribe to the channel.
- Updates on Twitter @BritishCycling.
- A one-hour highlights programme on British Eurosport 2 (Sky channel 411) (Virgin channel 525) on Friday 26 June at 4pm.
