British pro Alex Dowsett will look to recapture the Hour Record in Manchester next month.
The 32-year-old time-trial specialist announced he will be reattempting the record at the Manchester Velodrome on Sunday 12th December. The former holder of the record will be aiming to beat the current 55.089km distance set by Belgian Victor Campenaerts in April 2019.
‘When I took the record in 2015, we rode enough to break the record but I knew I had more in the tank at the end which was frustrating given the work put in by everyone,’ explained Dowsett.
‘I spotted an opportunity in December this year to have another go and obviously, I want to try and break the record, I want to see what I’m capable of and it’s an event I just really love and feel privileged to have the opportunity to take on again.’
Dowsett set his Hour Record in 2015, again at the Manchester Velodrome, with a distance of 52.937km, bettering the then existing record held by Rohan Dennis by roughly 450m. This new benchmark stood for just a month, however, as Bradley Wiggins then set a new record of 54.526km in June of 2015.
Dowsett, who currently rides for Israel Start-Up Nation, has consistently expressed interest in reattempting the record but has been hamstrung by road racing commitments. In the meantime, Belgian time-trial specialist Campenaerts travelled to altitude in Mexico to break Wiggins’s record, upping the distance to 55.089km.
The Essex-born rider will have his work cut out to better Campenaerts’s record on 12th December, not least as Dowsett will be riding at sea level. While he understands atmospheric pressure will not be on his side, he believes he has what it takes to set a new record.
‘The biggest hurdle to overcome in the Hour Record is actually wind. Put simply, the more efficiently you can cut through the air, the easier holding 55km+ per hour will be. The only variable outside of our control is atmospheric pressure so well have our fingers crossed for preferable air pressure come 12th December,’ said Dowsett.
‘In terms of difficulty, this time around I know the bar has been set extremely high by Victor Campanaerts. It’s going to be a very big ask but I think I’m capable.’
More than just chasing the record, Dowsett will also be using this event to promote his Little Bleeders charity, a foundation geared towards encouraging safe sport and activity to young haemophiliacs.
Dowsett himself suffers from the rare blood disease and is the world’s only professional athlete with the condition.