Cycle club urges disabled people to trial sport

Clubs encouraging people with disabilities to take up cycling are looking to the 2025 Para-Cycling World Championships to inspire more to take up the sport.

Solihull's Dannielle Khan is among those chasing medals at the Olympic Velodrome in Rio in the event, which starts on Thursday and continues until Sunday.

British Cycling is hoping the UK team will see more people take part in grass roots programmes run by clubs.

Richard Pedersen, from Wyre Forest Cycle Racing Club, which holds fortnightly Disability Hub sessions in Stourport, Worcestershire, said it was "not just all about competing, it's about taking part".

The sessions, held every other Sunday, are part of British Cycling's Limitless programme to get more people with disabilities on to a bike, and are also open to people recovering from surgery.

Cyclist Susan Kelly initially went there to support her husband but, after undergoing knee replacement surgery, started getting out on three wheels alongside her daughter Vicki.

She said: "The staff are fantastic. The choice of equipment is amazing and it's really nice to see the young children riding round."

Her daughter added: "It's very inclusive and nobody's made to feel different."

Cyclist Fred Browning has also used the one-mile track at Stourport Sports club to bounce back from surgery on his spine.

He said he loved seeing the club's younger members progress.

"It's amazing to see them getting on," he said. "They really have fun and laugh going around, and that little sense of speed when they come down here and they're floating through the slalom, it's great."

Mr Pedersen said: "We're the first step on that para pathway."

He said people could come to the Wyre Forest club and "see if cycling's for them", and then be helped to develop.

"It's not just all about competing, it's about taking part and enjoyment, and it's great for physical and mental wellbeing," he said.

"You can see it on the faces of people, that they're enjoying it."

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