Academy ready for UK debut

CYCLING A stellar collection of some of the best sprinters in the world are preparing for the 2017 Prudential Ride London-Surrey Classic on Sunday.

A total of 150 riders from 14 World Tour teams plus eight Pro-Continental teams, including the Israel Academy Team, will line up for a UCI World Tour — the first time a British event has achieved this status — and puts the Classic on the world’s highest tier.

Making their first appearance in the UK, the Israel Cycling Academy will have a seven-rider team, including the current National Road champion Roy Goldstein and Time Trial winner Guy Sagiv. They will be racing together with Latvian champion Krists Neilands. The squad also includes Zac Dempster, Jose Manuel Diaz Gallego, Jason Lowndes and Benjamin Perry.

A prize pot of 100,000 Euros will be available including the Continental Tyres Sprint Competition and King of the Mountains.

Starting at The Mall, following team presentation and riders signing-on in Horse Guards Parade, this year’s route is 187km and will take the riders from central London out to Surrey where they climb Leith Hill before two circuits taking in Dorking and Ranmore Common. Riders then head to the famous ascent of Box Hill before returning to central London and the iconic finish on The Mall.

The race is free to watch at the roadside and on giant TV screens in a number of prominent sites including Green Park and it will be televised on BBC TV. Academy riders to watch will be captain Dempster and Jason Lowndes.

Elsewhere, Jaimie Wimborne, 16, crashed out of stage two of the Junior Tour of Ireland. He has resumed training in preparation for his next event having gained a Cat 2 License following early season wins and high placings, earning 102 regional ranking points for the campaign. He has been racing for the BC Eastern Region team in the Junior Nationals.