British Cycling to remain based at Manchester Velodrome

The president of British Cycling has said the organisation will remain "loyal" to Manchester and not move to London's Olympic velodrome.

Great Britain's elite cycling base is Manchester's velodrome but there has been speculation the operation would move south after the Olympics.

Brian Cookson said Manchester would remain the home of cycling as the city had been "really supportive".

He said the city had been "loyal to us [and] we will remain loyal to them".

Manchester's velodrome, known as the National Cycling Centre, opened in 1994 and is the home of Great Britain's elite cyclists and the British Cycling Organisation.

London 2012 gold medallists Sir Chris Hoy, Victoria Pendleton, Bradley Wiggins and Jason Kenny are all based at the centre.

Mr Cookson said it would "remain the headquarters for British Cycling and will remain the National Cycling Centre".

"Manchester City Council have just supported us by building the new BMX centre and Manchester has been very loyal to us over the years.

"We will remain loyal to them and stay in Manchester."

The £24m National BMX Centre opened alongside the Velodrome in 2011 and was funded by Manchester City Council, Sport England and the European Regional Development Fund.