Alex Dowsett... record bid.Alex Dowsett... record bid.

Commonwealth Games time-trial champion Alex Dowsett will attempt to break The Hour Record at the Olympic Velodrome next year.

Dowsett’s Movistar team yesterday confirmed that the 26-year-old from Essex will make his bid on February 27 during the Revolution event at the Lee Valley VeloPark, as the London 2012 velodrome is now known.

The current mark of 51.852km was set by Austria’s Matthias Brandle in October, but Dowsett could have to go much further as Australian pair Jack Bobridge and Rohan Dennis are to make their bids prior to the Briton.

Dowsett, a haemophilia sufferer, said at a media conference in London: “Everyone understands a world record, so I wanted my next target to be The Hour Record.

“The Hour is something I’ve always been interested in... the simplicity of it... no tactics, no hiding, just you and the bike.

“Now I’ve got a new sense of drive as I know that the more success I can achieve, the more hope it will give everyone in the whole rare disease community.

“We spend our childhoods being told what we can’t do, so I’m going for the record for anyone that gets told what they can’t do something and goes out to prove themselves otherwise. I’m training a hell of a lot harder because of it.”

UCI president Brian Cookson said: “Dowsett’s attempt gives credit to the amendment of the regulations we introduced several months ago.

“The recent changes have sparked an exciting series of challenges, which is exactly what we hoped would happen when we decided to authorise the use of track bikes with modern designs and technology.

“The UCI Hour Record has been revived and is capturing the imaginations of riders and fans alike.”

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