Home Win At Olympic Road Cycling Test Event

Lindsey
By Lindsey Last edited 151 months ago
Home Win At Olympic Road Cycling Test Event
Riders cycle past Buckingham Palace by Mark Baynes
Riders cycle past Buckingham Palace by Mark Baynes
Riders pass Buckingham Palace at the finish by Mark Baynes
Riders pass Buckingham Palace at the finish by Mark Baynes
Passing through Putney by Massimo Usai
Passing through Putney by Massimo Usai
Passing through Putney by Massimo Usai
Passing through Putney by Massimo Usai
Breakaway peloton, Richmond Park by James Docker
Breakaway peloton, Richmond Park by James Docker

The London-Surrey Cycle Classic and Olympic road cycling test event yesterday saw around 100,000 spectators flock to the route on a sunny Sunday and a home win for British cyclist, Mark Cavendish. Organisers are reportedly "very, very pleased" with the way it went.

The 140km route passed through six London boroughs and four Royal Parks. The men's Olympic route for 2012 will be longer, at 250km, taking in extra loops of Box Hill in Surrey.

Motorists trying to get around west London and Surrey, however, weren't so pleased to find themselves stuck in traffic jams with little on-road help to find alternative routes. Despite a TfL campaign to warn drivers in advance about road closures, it seems race marshalls weren't sufficiently briefed with good local knowledge or equipped with maps to be able to help scuppered carloads navigate around the route, as the Independent reports.

Managing transport around London while the Olympic and Paralympic Games go on in 2012 is crucial to the success of the Games so test event feedback is invaluable to ensure the real race next year avoids unnecessary inconvenience or undue disruption to 'normal' life and, of course, to other Olympic traffic ferrying athletes and officials around town.

Thanks to Mark Baynes, James Docker and Massimo Usai who shared their photographs in the Londonist Flickrpool. There are many more photos in the race Flickrpool.

Last Updated 15 August 2011