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Chris Boardman joins cyclists at RIDE24

Almost 50 teams and nine lone cyclists rode through the night and braved heavy showers in the battle to see who could travel furthest in 24 hours at the weekend's RIDE24 event.

The third annual 24-hour bike race was organised by children's charity Action Medical Research and supported by IG Markets, the leading provider of Contracts for Difference.

Cycling legend Chris Boardman joined riders on the Goodwood Motor Circuit track in Sussex for the final few hours of racing before presenting the trophies at the end.

The overall event winners were a four-man team from the University of Birmingham, who completed 230 laps and travelled a total of 552 miles. They were seven laps ahead of second placed TL Sports Events while Outside5 Biketarts came third.

Team Basingstoke was the winning veteran's team, while CycloProPain - a team of doctors - took the mixed team title. The Fully Furnished Group brought the winning six-man team and soloist Jean Christophe Teppaz was the leading solo rider.

The weekend's fastest lap was put in by Paul Holdaway riding for the TL Sports Events team. He was presented with a Roamer watch and a bottle of bubbly for his efforts. In addition to their trophy, the University of Birmingham team of Xavier Disley, Nick Pilborough, Oliver Wilson and Mark Brown also won a free place in the French 24 Heures Velo event at the Le Mans motor racing circuit in August.

Cyclists participating in RIDE24 raised money to help fund medical research into conditions affecting babies and children. The event is expected to raise more than £70,000 for the charity.

Speaking trackside Chris Boardman said: "I think this is a great event. If people are looking for a personal challenge then it's ideal and attached to a great charity. Doing something like this is something you'll remember forever. It was nice to get out on the bike myself for the last couple of hours after a really busy week. It's a great challenge and I think we'll try and put in a team ourselves next year."

Sarah Stevenson, event manager at Action Medical Research, said: "We are so proud of each and every rider who raced day and night to complete this mammoth challenge. Once again, the camaraderie between the teams and the atmosphere were fantastic, despite some heavy showers. A big thank you to everyone who supported this year's event."

RIDE24 is the UK's only 24-hour cycling endurance track event and is operated under British Cycling technical regulations. The event also has Race Across America (RAAM) qualifier status for solo riders looking to prove they are good enough to take on the world-famous ultra-endurance cycling race.