London Olympics 2012: nation 'can be very proud' of velodrome, says GB's cycling performance director
Great Britain's cycling performance director Dave Brailsford has said the nation "can be very proud" of the new velodrome track which was officially opened at the London Olympics site earlier today.
Test run: members of the British Cycling Track team take to the velodrome Photo: PA
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By Brendan Gallagher 12:15PM GMT 22 Feb 2011
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Brailsford said that it only seemed "five minutes ago" that he was looking at a cardboard model of the track and is hoping it will prove a successful Olympic venue for Great Britain's Track Cycling Team next summer.
Matt Crampton was the first GB rider to test it out early this morning – and can now afford one day off to bask gently in the glory before getting back to work.
Brailsford said: "Everything is absolutely first class for the riders. From the track to the access to the pits, while the concourse on the middle level for supporters to walk around is perfect. It has been put together by people who really care about cycling and who have taken the trouble to consult us guys along the way.
"One of the things I love about this velodrome is that it is just 300 metres from the Olympic village which is ideal. The last velodrome which was on the Olympic site was Seoul in 1988. It is a facility that the nation can be very proud of. It seems just five minutes ago I had a cardboard model of the interior on my desk, moving things around, to see if this and that worked.
"Stunning as it is, in many ways we have to try and treat this as just another velodrome. This is the sporting arena where our sole job is to win medals. It looks like a very fast track, there is no reason why it shouldn't be, but we will know soon enough.
"In configuration it reminds me more of the track in Newport, than our Manchester track. The finish is five metres further down the straight than in Manchester and we will only get to know the perfect lines to ride for maxiumum speed in due course."
The glory of the velodrome – immediately dubbed the 'Pringle' by the proud East End locals – is its basic simplicity and beauty. You could spend a lifetime trying to come up with a better intrinsic design and fail miserably. And of course the thing about Pringles, as well we know, is that you just can't get enough of them. You keep going back for more and more.
Designer Mike Taylor, a partner at Hopkins architects and a keen cyclist, can take much of the credit but cyclists such as Sir Chris Hoy and Paul Manning were also consulted along the way and the 6000 capacity velodrome would appear to be both cyclist and spectator friendly.
At the specific suggestion of the cyclists the seating has been extended around the high banking to ensure that the "wall of noise" all cyclists refer to and love during competition is complete. Hoy also requested that industrial air curtains be installed by all the doors – as spectators enter and exit draughts of cold air can enter the velodrome and have a surprisingly detrimental effect to the timed events.
"It will be nice when we turn up on race day for the first day of competition at the Olympics," said four-time Olympic gold medal winner Sir Chris Hoy. "All of the Union Jacks will be out and, hopefully, the noise and the atmosphere will give us an advantage, maybe put the fear of death into the other countries, too."
"Having been involved in a very small way in the design process in the early stages, it's amazing to see the velodrome finally completed," said Hoy. "To be able to have ridden on it gives me a feel for what it's going to be like. I can't wait."
"No matter where you are in the stadium, you can see the full track. Instead of having noise in the back straight and the home straight as you go around, you get this wall of noise the whole way. It creates this gladiatorial arena."
ODA chairman John Armitt said: "In delivering the velodrome on time and to budget, we have completed our first Olympic Park venue and our biggest milestone to date. "The striking architecture of the velodrome and the medal prospects of our world-leading cyclists mean the venue will become one of the defining images from the Games, and a landmark new building for future generations to enjoy."
London Mayor Boris Johnson added: "It's going to be a fantastic theatre of sport and will be the crucible where future champions are forged."
For the technically minded the 250m piste consists of 54km of Siberian pine shipped in from Archangel and shaped at a German sawmill while 360,000 nails have been required to "fix" the piste in position.
The banking is the standard 42 degree for a 250m track and although, like most new tracks, it is expected to be lightening quick nobody will really know until it is first used in earnest. Sir Chris Hoy and Vicky Pendleton will both be present today and might find a couple of flying laps irresistible.
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