SPORTS

World Cup event gets Kent wheelie excited

Kent welcomed 49 of the world’s top hand cyclists when they competed in the John Rudd Memorial Race Series – the UK leg of the World Handcycling Federation (WHF) World Cup, on Saturday.

The event which coincided with the Kent leg of the Tour De France and was organised by Kent County Council’s Sports Development Unit in partnership with the WHF and attracted International Paralympic Committee medallists and current Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) World Champions.

The athletes, who were from as far away as Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand, competed in a 35km time trial on the Betteshanger Circuit, which opened in May and is the largest purpose built closed track in the UK.

KCC Cabinet Member for Community Services Mike Hill said:
“This high profile event will leave a lasting legacy for disabled sport in Kent and I hope that the venue at Betteshanger will be the centrepiece for future events of this kind. I would like to encourage as many people as possible to watch the race on Saturday during what will be an exciting and memorable weekend for the county.”

After completing the event at Fowlmead Country Park, the riders traveled to Canterbury for a gala dinner, attended by Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, the winner of 11 Paralympic gold medals. On Saturday, competitors traveled to London for a road race in Hyde Park as part of the Tour De France celebrations.

Attracting major sports events for Kent is one of the priorities of the Kent Campaign’s Sport sectoral task group, and the Campaign has been proud to support this event coming to the county.

Dover Hits the Target

Tickets are now available for the Archery World Cup, that is being hosted at the Duke of York Royal Military School in Dover.

The World Cup takes place over six days and culminates in a two day final on Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th of August. The event has Lord Sebastian Coe, Chariman of the London 2012 Organising Committee, as its patron.

During the event, qualified coaches will be on hand, providing 'Come and Try Archery' sessions for groups or individuals keen to learn about the sport and acquire new skills.

Tickets are £8.00 during the week (valid Tuesday to Friday) and £8.00 for each of the finals days (Saturday and Sunday), or alternatively tickets for the whole event are £20.00. There are also half price concessionary rates available for over 60s and under 16s. Please visit www.archerygb.org.uk for more infor about the event and to get your tickets.