Sir Bradley Wiggins has broken the iconic hour record by completing a distance of 54.526km (33.88 miles)…reports Asian Lite News
The 35-year-old Olympic winner smashed the record previously held by fellow Briton Alex Dowsett of 52.937km (32.89 miles), which was set in May, BBC reported.
Roared on by a capacity crowd at Lee Valley VeloPark in London, Wiggins became the sixth rider to claim a Tour de France title and the hour record.
The multiple Olympic and world champion on track and road surpassed Dowsett’s 212 laps, set in Manchester, with 1 min 42 secs to spare and eventually completed 219 laps. But the 2012 Tour de France winner fell short of the target he had set himself of 55.250km, or 221 laps.
“The hour record is a holy grail for cyclists,” Wiggins said. “It’s been fought over tooth and nail by some of the greatest names in our sport for over a hundred years and it’s time for me to have a crack at it.
“I like the idea of challenging myself and want to motivate people to do the same – so why not get your bike out of the shed and see how far you can go in an hour?”
Germany’s Jens Voigt was first to set a new benchmark of 51.115 kilometres in September 2014, which stood until Austria’s Matthias Brandle extended it to 51.852 kilometres.
UCI president Brian Cookson said, “I am thrilled to see that a rider of such calibre as Bradley Wiggins – an Olympic Champion and Tour de France winner – is attracted by the prospect of entering into the legend of the iconic UCI Hour Record.
“This is exactly what the UCI was hoping for, when modernising the rules of the event last year, allowing the use of up-to-date pursuit bikes and equipment. I’m convinced that Bradley will give his very best to set a very high mark for the UCI Hour Record.
“But such performance is never achieved easily, so I’m excited to see what he can do in what is one of the toughest challenges in our sport.”