Ed Clancy seeking to use Tour of Britain to inspire next generation of cyclists

Having played a key role in placing Britain at the top of the podium in three Olympic Games on his track bike, Clancy is attempting to move the wheels again in his role of Active Travel Commissioner for South Yorkshire, one of the many hats he wears post Games retirement.

One such role is being present on County Way through the town centre he used to call home as Stevie Williams of Wales led home a chasing pack including Tom Pidcock of Yorkshire to win stage three of the race.

Clancy was there as a fan as well as a networker, speaking with the likes of Stephanie Peacock MP, Minister for Sport, Media, Civil Society and Youth, who was there to help launch a package of initiatives that has its origins in the UCI Road World Championships which came to this county five years ago.

Delivered in partnership between British Cycling, Sport England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Places to Ride has invested significant funds in facilities nationwide since 2019, when funding was allocated to deliver a lasting legacy from the UCI Road World Championships, which was centred around Harrogate.

The latest tranche was £15m in funding across 150 facilities from skate parks, to BMX tracks, to mountain bike trails, all designed at ensuring people across the country will find it easier than ever to get involved in all forms of cycling.

“It’s basically places where people can get out and ride bikes and be happy and active and reap the rewards that physical and mental health can bring,” says Clancy, who looking at the faces who lined the finish knows the importance of giving them something beyond the event to channel their new-found interest in cycling.

“Donating money to skate parks, cycle trails, off-road circuits; something like the Doncaster Dome cycle circuit, which has had money in the past. There’s Parkwood Springs in Sheffield with mountain bike trails.

“I think 83 per cent of the funding is targeted around the youth, which is good, they need places to go. It’s very simplistic, if people don’t have places to ride then they won’t do it.

“If they don’t have places where they feel safe or happy or invited, then they won’t go outside, they’ll stay indoors.”

Clancy continued: “The thing about these big key events, like we’re seeing here with the Tour of Britain, is it’s great to have these because there’ll be a return on investment locally, it’s inspirational for the people, it makes people feel good about themselves - and that alone is enough reason to have a big event.

“But if you can have a long-lasting legacy off the back of it, you can bring more events back or you can provide places where kids or adults can go and ride their bikes, and cyclists might have a decent infrastructure where they can ride to work.

“This word legacy is often overlooked after a big event comes and goes, but if we’re doing it right people will be inspired and have the opportunity to act upon that for years to come.

“If this event existed purely on its own as a one-off, that’s still great - but if we can leverage a future out of it as well, for instance bring it back next year and wrap it around the launch of new initiatives and put the spotlight on cycling. There’s a lot of work on the Trans Pennine Trail to get people commuting to work - that’s what we want, people reaping the benefits of physical and mental health.”

Growing up in Ingbirchworth before he moved across the border as he puts it, to live in Huddersfield, his return to Barnsley on Thursday evoked fond memories for Clancy and a rekindled pride in his home town. “It was 35 years ago that I kicked off my cycling story, I was just a Barnsley lad. I remember coming to trails and parks to ride my bike around here,” he smiles.

“Then in later life I’d come across people from Barnsley Road Club.

“I tell you what, I’m no expert in economic regeneration but Barnsley has done really well.

“In my role as Active Travel Commissioner for South Yorkshire I spend a lot of time in all four of the local authorities, and Barnsley has really come on. You’ve got the Glassworks which is great, the centre is pedestrianised, you can sit and have a coffee. It’s genuinely nice.

“We know what South Yorkshire’s reputation is: our steel, our mining history, our industrial heritage, and people are rightly proud of that. But we’re showing we shouldn’t be lagging behind any other region in the country.”

Frenchman Paul Magnier won his second Tour of Britain stage in four days as he edged across the line first in a bunched finish on day four.

The 20-year-old won the 138.5kilometre stage from Derby to Newark.