The Olympic Velodrome by Eltham John

When the London Olympics were first confirmed in 2005 I can remember having a conversation with a few old friends that as the velodrome had yet to be built and the games themselves were still several years in the future,  the chances of any of us getting to see racing on the track were pretty remote bearing our advanced ages at that time.

Well the Olympics came and went and the inaccessibility of tickets  seemed to prove our point even though we were still managing to stay alive.

However ten years on from the date of that original conversation I am so pleased to be able to say that I have at last visited  the venue where in 2012 such amazing results were achieved by Chris Hoy, Vicky Pendleton and the rest of Team G.B.

The Revolution Meeting may not have been the Olympics but the atmosphere at the track on Saturday afternoon when Sarah Storey made her brilliant hour record attempt made the ten year wait seem all worth while.

I can honestly say that the meeting as a whole came up to and beyond my expectations  and was on a par with (when many years ago I queued up at Herne Hill for) the historic Coppi Meeting where even with its "managed races" those of us who were lucky enough to be there were provided with unforgettable memories.   By the way, although I have never seen it referred to anywhere, I can assure you that Fausto was the only rider to use Campag Quick Release hubs on a track bike (obviously the late Eddie Wingrave was not the Commissaire for that meeting.)

But back to the present, and the Revolution meeting, the international  standard of riding was most impressive with a superb display of Derny Pacing and an immaculate display by Laura Trott with her positioning and sprinting at its absolute peak.