CYCLING: Three Bolton teenage cyclists have taken the first steps towards following in the slipstream of the town’s Olympic hero Jason Kenny.

Matthew Rotherham, aged 13, and Melissa Bury, aged 14, both of Canon Slade School, and 14-year-old Chris Latham of Withins School have been selected for the Great Britain Talent Team Programme that puts them on the first rung of the development ladder that could take them to the top of their sport.

The highly-rated trio of all-rounders, who are all members of the Manchester-based Sport City team, will have the benefit of the country’s top coaches and use of the best facilities at Manchester Velodrome and other training centres to encourage their development and realise the potential they have already shown on the track and on the road.

The Talent Team Programme aims to identify promising youngsters and and nurture their talent while moving them up through the Olympic Development and Olympic Academy Programmes with the ultimate goal being the Olympic Podium Programme.

Aided by lottery funding, it is the programme that delivered unprecedented success at the Beijing Olympics where the British team won eight gold medals.

Kenny, the 20-year-old from Farnworth, took gold in the team pursuit and silver in the individual sprint as Team GB confirmed their world domination of the sport.