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Olympic champion Dani King announced yesterday that she will focus on the road in 2015.
The 23-year-old won the gold in the women’s team pursuit at London 2012 and has three world titles in the discipline, but did not make the final selection at February’s Track World Championships, despite the event increasing from 3km and three riders to 4km and four riders.
King will focus on racing with Wiggle-Honda next year, forgoing the forthcoming track season, which begins with the European Championships in Guadeloupe later this month, but has vowed to return to the velodrome for the 2016 Olympics.
The decision was made “in order to give Dani the best opportunity for her to develop as a cyclist and to realise her ambition of defending her Olympic title at Rio de Janeiro in 2016,” British Cycling said in a statement.
King won silver, behind Britain’s Lizzie Armitstead, at June’s British Cycling National Road Race Championships in Abergavenny and also looked promising at the inaugural Friends Life Women’s Tour, despite finishing in 30th position, earlier this year.
She said: “I’m really excited to be given this opportunity by British Cycling to go and do a full season on the road with Wiggle-Honda.
“The idea of riding a road season as preparation for team pursuit hasn’t been done before in our squad but is a tried and tested method within the men’s endurance squad with Team Sky.
“I therefore believe it will enable me to get the best out of myself as a cyclist and give me the best chance possible to defend the Olympic title I won at London 2012 in the team pursuit.”
British Cycling’s technical director Shane Sutton said: “Dani has been ever present in our women’s endurance track squad since she joined us in November 2010 and her palmares on the track over the last four years have marked her out as one of the great pursuiters.
“This is a move we have made following discussions with Dani to ensure she can be in the best shape possible to defend the Olympic title she won at London 2012.
“Wiggle-Honda provide her with a good environment within which to do exactly that.”
