Hoy furious over track demolition

Triple Olympic gold medallist Chris Hoy has expressed his anger at plans to demolish Meadowbank Velodrome.

Hoy honed his skills on the Edinburgh track as a youngster and is dismayed by what he sees as a short-sighted decision.

The Scot, who flew home with Team GB yesterday, believes that, if Britain wants to be serious about building on their success in winning 47 medals - including 19 gold - in Beijing, then more facilities should be built.

"The bottom line is I would not be sitting here with any gold medals around my neck if it hadn't been for that facility in Edinburgh when I was 13 or 14 years of age," he said.

"There's a new track being built for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow but to demolish a track in Edinburgh means there are a crop of youngsters who will not be able to try the sport.

"They don't have to become elite athletes, they may just want to do it for fun. It's very short-sighted.

"But hopefully the success of the team in Beijing will put some pressure on them to change things."