Local residents, children and cyclists to get wristbands for London-Surrey Cycle Classic

Local residents, children and cyclists to get wristbands for London-Surrey Cycle Classic

Local residents, children and cyclists all have a chance to watch the London-Surrey Cycle Classic from the Zig Zag Road area of Box Hill.

The 140km race, on Sunday 14 August, will act as a test event for the 2012 Olympic men’s and women’s road races. It will start and finish in London and include an 80km loop of Surrey.

Spectators will have unlimited access to watch the action along the vast majority of the route but numbers will be limited to 3,400 people along the 1.8km Zig Zag Road section of Box Hill to protect its precious environment, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Race organiser LOCOG* will run a wristband system to gain entry to Zig Zag Road on race day.

To make sure local residents get to see the race LOCOG has allocated Surrey councils along the route and Surrey Police 1,400 wristbands. British Cycling will also distribute a number of wristbands to their club members.

Denise Saliagopoulos, Surrey County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and the 2012 Games, said: “The National Trust, which owns Box Hill, and race organiser LOCOG have come up with a fair way to allow as many people as possible to watch the race along Zig Zag Road while ensuring the precious environment is protected.

“The wristband system means cyclists, children and local residents all have a chance to watch the race from this area. Those who don’t get a wristband shouldn’t worry because there are nearly 80km of race route in Surrey to choose from, including the rest of Box Hill. Zig Zag Road is only 2.6% of the race and there are plenty of other fantastic places to watch the action."

Wristbands will be allocated as follows in Surrey:

• Surrey County Council has 520. In a bid to inspire young people to get involved in sport, a total of 400 of these will be distributed to youth groups from across the whole of Surrey through an online booking form at http://www.gosurrey.info/cycling, from midday today <19 JULY>, on a first come, first served basis. A total of 110 will be given to Surrey children in care. Up to 10 will be held for operational county council staff.

• Mole Valley, the area Box Hill is in, has an allocation of 460 wristbands. Some of these will be given to residents of Headley Court, a centre for the rehabilitation of injured service men and women. The rest will be distributed in an online competition which all Mole Valley residents can enter. Residents can apply for wristbands tomorrow <19 JULY> at http://www.molevalley.co.uk

• The boroughs of Elmbridge, Woking, Guildford and Reigate and Banstead have been allocated 80 wristbands each. They will each hold an online competition to distribute them, apart from Reigate and Banstead which will hold an online lottery. Elmbridge residents can apply online from today <19 JULY> at http://www.elmbridge.gov.uk.Woking residents can apply online from 23 July at woking.gov.uk Reigate and Bansteadresidents can apply online from today <19 JULY> at http://www.reigate-banstead.gov.uk. Details will be available from Guildford Borough Council’s website, www.guildford.gov.uk, in the next few days.

• Surrey Police has 100 wristbands. Half will be given to community spirited residents through Surrey Police’s Active Citizens and the other half will be distributed through an online competition at www.surrey.police.uk from today. <19 JULY>

ENDS

For more information on Surrey County Council’s involvement contact senior media relations officer James Oxley on 0208 541 7259.

Please contact individual council and police press offices for more information on each of their wristband allocations.

Notes to editors

* LOCOG is the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

For more information on the London-Surrey Cycle Classic and Surrey’s wider involvement in the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, visit http://www.gosurrey.info

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