Survival of the fittest: Young cyclists battle it out to be crowned champion at Olympic Park

Pupils aged between nine and 11 from schools across east London took part in the competition in Lee Valley VeloPark in Stratford’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on Wednesday, November 15.

Four schools in Waltham Forest took part in a series of heats on a half mile traffic free road circuit.

Our Lady and St George’s School, Mission Grove School and Whittingham School in Walthamstow and Larkswood School in Chingford sent their fittest athletes.

All the riders participating in the event had taken part in British Cycling’s youth development programme, Go-Ride, which teaches youngsters bike handling skills.

The fastest riders in each heat scored points which contributed to their school’s overall total.

Shaun Dawson, Chief Executive at Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, said: “For the past six years we have funded Schools Festivals across our three Olympic legacy venues to give young people the opportunity to experience the excitement of sport in truly world class venues.

“These events continue the social and sporting legacy of the London 2012 Games and inspire our next generation of athletes”.

Russell Hampton, Go Ride Coach at British Cycling said: “It was fantastic to see so many of our Go Ride graduates participating together in one event.

“Racing in competitions like this provides the perfect opportunity for young riders to put newly-developed skills to the test and also helps them to prepare for the higher tiers of competition.

“Two-thirds of the Team GB cycling squad at Rio 2016 started their cycling careers through Go Ride, including the most successful female track cyclist in Olympic history, Laura Trott.

“We hope that we can carry on this trend and continue to cultivate the Olympic and Paralympic stars of the future.”

Gallions Primary School from Newham were crowned the Lee Valley VeloPark’s Inter-School Champions with a total of 38 points.