King James I Academy has teamed up with British Cycling to host a special Youth Cross Country Cycling event. Students from both King James and Staindrop School took part in the friendly competition, which was the first of its kind in the Bishop Auckland area.

The event, which was jointly organised by Dan Small, NE Development Manager for British Cycling and Peter Ramsey, Sports Development Officer at King James, was the next step in an extensive programme of curriculum cycling activities already implemented at King James. "Our PE curriculum has changed dramatically over the past year to include more unusual sports" said Peter."The idea to introduce cycling was partly due to the suitability of the Academy grounds, which have the perfect mix of natural woodland, varied terrain and inclines,that all make for an excellent cross country venue. Naturally, we were delighted when British Cycling offered their expertise and agreed to help us organise this event."

The cross country was attended by fifty riders and twelve newly qualified cycling officials from both schools, all of whom recently completed the "Go-Ride Racing Marshall Course', run by British Cycling Go-Ride Coach, Alex McLean. Riders competed in various races, including year group individual races and team relay events, with all winners presented with medals of achievement.

Dan Small has helped to arrange a number of similar events for under 16's: "My role involves working specifically with young people in schools and Go-Ride Clubs to promote all types of cycling from BMX to Cycle-speedway, and to offer professional coaching opportunities. We have previously held events in Tees Valley, Northumberland and Cleveland, however, this is the first in the Bishop Auckland area. Cross-country events are a great way for schools to link up and this competition has been a resounding success that we can further build upon. King James is an ideal venue so hopefully it will become a regular feature on their events calendar and we can encourage more schools to take part in the future."