Region’s success in Rio largely explained by success of Team GB cyclists, many of whom live near Manchester velodrome

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

If Greater Manchester was a country, it would currently be sitting level on the Olympic leaderboard with Spain and just behind host nation Brazil.

Residents of the region have now won seven gold medals, four silvers and one bronze in the Rio Games.

Rio 2016 Olympics: men's marathon gets under way, Mo Farah wins again – live! Read more

The figure can largely be explained by the phenomenal success of Team GB’s cycling squad, many of whom live near the Manchester velodrome, and who have won 11 medals.



If the medals won by Greater Manchester residents were removed from Team GB’s overall haul, the UK would fall from second to fourth place.

Theresa May announced on Saturday that Manchester would join London in hosting a parade for the UK’s Olympians in October, following calls for an official celebration to be held outside the capital to reflect the fact that the country’s athletes come from across the UK.

The prime minister said it would be “a celebration fit for heroes – and rightly so, because that is exactly what they are.” The deputy leader of Manchester city council, Sue Murphy, said the city had been a “medal factory”, pumping out golds as the home of British cycling and British Taekwondo.

“It’s fantastic to see the product of years of hard work and training at the centres of excellence in east Manchester,” she said.

Among Greater Manchester’s Olympians are the cyclist couple Laura Trott and Jason Kenny, who won two and three gold medals respectively, and Taekwondo star Jade Jones.

The National Cycling Centre’s velodrome was built in 1994 for Manchester’s failed bids to host the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games, and was the UK’s first indoor cycling track.

More than 15 track cycling world records have been set on the track, which hosted events in the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The National Taekwondo Centre is also in Manchester.