British Cycling signs up 50,000th member

In 2007, British Cycling had 20,000 members.

On more than doubling the number of members in just five years, British Cycling’s President, Brian Cookson OBE, said:

“British Cycling signing up its 50,000th member could not come at a better time for our sport. We’re in the midst of the Tour de France where Britain is hoping to secure its first ever winner, we’re a matter of days away from Team GB competing at London 2012, and we’ve seen a huge spike in cycling participation numbers with over 160,000 more people getting on bikes.

“We owe our success to a number of factors: the investment from Sport England and UK Sport, our partner Sky and our sponsors. But critically, we need to thank our members, clubs, regions and volunteers, the people who have helped to get cycling in the best shape it has ever been in.

“There have never been more opportunities to cycle and our ambitions remain high. We’re now looking ahead to the next four year funding cycle where we hope to grow the sport further with more rises in participation, building of state-of-the-art facilities, and inspiring tens of thousands more members to join us on the journey.”

In April 2007, British Cycling membership was at just 20,000 members. Last September, the sports governing body announced that membership had doubled to 40,000.

Four time Olympic champion and British Cycling member, Sir Chris Hoy, said:

“I’ve been a member of British Cycling for over 20 years and I’m really proud to be a part of, alongside 50,000 others, the massive growth of the sport and its governing body. We’re gearing up for our home Olympics which is going to be an amazing experience for everyone, and British Cycling members should be very proud of the role they’ve played in helping the sport thrive at all levels. Membership isn’t just for people who want to compete – there are benefits for everyone getting on a bike – and I hope the Games will inspire thousands more people to take up cycling.”