Olympic gold medallists aim to conquer the Lincolnshire Wolds in cycling contest

Olympic champion Steven Burke (MBE) will be looking to strike gold tomorrow (Sunday) by winning the first-ever Magna Vitae Tour of the wolds title, organised by British Cycling.
Pro riders will be taking on the Lincolnshrie Wolds with the aim of coming back to Louth with the gold win.Pro riders will be taking on the Lincolnshrie Wolds with the aim of coming back to Louth with the gold win.
Pro riders will be taking on the Lincolnshrie Wolds with the aim of coming back to Louth with the gold win.

Burnley-born Burke is just one of the glittering array of stars who will line-up in men’s and women’s elite races in what promises to be a thrilling day of cycling action.

Burke was a member of the four-strong Great Britain team that struck gold in the team pursuit in the Rio Olympics.

That was the latest in a long-list of triumphs for Burke who was awarded an MBE because of his service to British cycling.

His teammates in Rio were ed Clancy, Owain Doull and Bradley Wiggins.

Tomorrow, he will be hoping to spearhead the challenge by as a member of the Team Wiggins set-up.

Bradley Wiggins is, of course, not among the entry list but he could be tempted to watch the action which will also be featured, live on TV

Both the men’s and women’s races start in Louth but the routes take in most of the breathtaking Wolds.

The women are first in action with Dame Sarah Storey among the 109 starters who will be starting off from the town centre in Louth.

A feature of the route will be the Caistor ‘loop’ which features some daunting limbs to the north of the region.

Riders will then head back to Louth for what promises to be a thrilling finish around the town’s streets.

The women’s race - which covers 62 miles - starts at 9.30am and is expected to finish around 12pm.

The men’s race gets underway at 12.30om and will take in 102 miles with Burke and his fellow competitors completing the dreaded Caistor loop three times.

Again, the finish will be an action packed affair around the streets of Louth with the winner expected across the line at about 4.30pm.

Massive crowds are expected in Louth and there are several big names - not just Burke who will be aiming for a place on the podium.

The entry list also features Jack Pullar and Harry Tanfield who will be riding for BIKE Channel Canyon and Ian Bibby who will pull on the colours of JLT Condor.

Both the men’s and women’s races will count towards the overall national cycling rankings.

Apart from the cycling action organisers and sponsors are hoping the event will showpiece the Wolds at their very best.

There are already reports accommodation int he area being booked to capacity and a number of business will open specially tomorrow.

*Full details of the route, racers and road closure an be found on the Tour of the Wolds website: http://www.tourofthewolds.co.uk.

Related topics: