Cyclists Roche and Baxter pre-selected for Island Games

Roche has won 21 gold medals in nine Island Games

Team Microgaming Isle of Man Cycling has announced fundamental changes to its selection policy ahead of the Island Games.

For the first time the team has pre-selected two captains in a bid to achieve five gold medals in 2011.

Andrew Roche will lead the Island's road team and Elliot Baxter will head up the off-road challenge.

The full team will be named in April ahead of the Games which start on the Isle of Wight on Sunday, 25 June.

Team Microgaming IOM director Gary Hinds said: "The competition at the Island Games gets tougher each time round and with five individual men's events, on and off road, it's also a tough schedule for athletes.

"Although they are individual events, cycling is a massive team effort as cumulative individual positions count towards team medal classifications.

"Andrew and Elliot are not only individually talented athletes, they are fantastic team captains who do a great deal to pass on their experience and motivation to the rest of the team.

"They both have enormous respect from the cycling community not just on the Island but also in the UK."

Baxter won two individual goal medals in Rhodes in 2007

Former pro-mountain biker Baxter has consistently been the Island' s best performing cross-country rider in recent history.

He won two individual gold medals at the Rhodes Games in 2007, and more recently finished second to former British Olympian Nick Craig in the 2010 End-to-End challenge .

Meanwhile, former Ras Tour of Ireland winner Roche still competes at UK national series level for continental team Motorpoint.

It will be the hugely experienced cyclist's ninth Island Games during which he has won 21 gold medals (individual and team). He has also competed at six Commonwealth Games, including last year's competition in Delhi .

Cycling was absent from the last Island Games which took place in Aland, two years ago.

However at the 2007 Games held in Rhodes, the Isle of Man men's cycling team claimed five out of a possible eight gold medals.