Award of cycling championships brings Commonwealth Games hope
Staging a major cycling championships could strengthen the Black Country's chances of hosting road races at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, local stars believe.
Britain's best cyclists will take to the roads for the sport's biggest events this summer.
The starting point for the National Road Championships will be Centenary Square in Birmingham and cyclists will head through Sandwell and Dudley, passing Dudley Zoo and Himley Hall, to the finish point in Queen Square, Wolverhampton.
One of the most difficult sections will be the steep climb up The Holloway in Compton, before the riders head into the city for the finish.
It's hoped thousands of people will line the route to cheer on the competitors on June 20, and securing the event has been hailed as a major coup for the region.
Past winners include Tour de France champion Geraint Thomas and Mark Cavendish.
There has been a push for the Black Country to have a greater involvement in the 2022 Games. Mountain biking will be staged at Cannock Chase and council officials in the Black Country are keen to stage part of the road racing events.
Wolverhampton cycling star Andy Tennant, a former world and European champion, said: "It's amazing for my home city to be presenting such a prestigious event.
"Obviously we have got the Commonwealth Games coming up and Wolverhampton is interested in being involved in that.
"It would be great if the West Midlands' wider community could be involved somehow in the Commonwealth Games and not all the locations in Birmingham. The idea is a legacy is left behind."
Wolverhampton cycling legend Hugh Porter echoed those views and said: "The national championships could be the stimulus for the Commonwealth Games.
"I'm hoping it will be the catalyst to awarding one of the road events to Wolverhampton."
Cyclists will head down the A456 Wolverhampton Road, continuing north on the A4123 towards The Black Country Living Museum and onto Priory Road towards Dudley Town Centre.
The route then heads west into South Staffordshire, passing Himley Hall, passing through several villages before the final push into Wolverhampton.
Officials hope the staging of the event in the Black Country could encourage more people to take up cycling.
Wolverhampton Council leader Ian Brookfield said: "Sometimes people forget the heritage of Wolverhampton. It is a cycling city. We want to put ourselves back in that position.
"It's good for society. It's a really easy event and hobby to get into. We're making more available, more cycle lanes and using hundreds of miles of canals to re-energise them."
Ian Carey, director of Active Black Country, part of the Black Country Consortium, said: "We're in the business of encouraging people to get active and what better way to do that than a live sporting spectacle for Black Country residents and schools and to be only a few feet away from the action?"
