Thomson Sport gets fanatical about bikes
Less than a month after announcing its first ever cycling trip with Olympic gold medallist Geraint Thomas, Thomson Sport is proud to announce its newest ambassador - Ben Swift.
Born in Rotherham and based in the Isle of Man, the 23-year-old has gone from strength-to-strength since breaking into the professional cycling ranks in 2009. After a short stint with the Russian Katusha team, Ben is now an enthusiastic member of Team Sky. Ben recently announced he will be cycling in his first ever Tour de France.
“It is great to have Ben on-board as an ambassador for Thomson Sport. He is a brilliant role model and a genuinely lovely guy who we hope will give a boost to our new cycling ventures - it is such a great discipline to get involved in,” said Clare Last, Operations Manager for Thomson Sport.
Ben, who has just launched his own website benswiftcycling.com, began cycling when he was just three and started BMX racing before turning his hand to all disciplines of the sport. Ben won his first international race in 1997 and has kept improving as he has represented Great Britain in the 2008 Olympic Games road race and finished fourth at the under 23s category of the UCI Road World Championships. Ben has also ranked third overall at the Tour Down Under and had wins at the Tour of Picardie, Tour of Britain, Tour of California, Tour de Romandie and the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon.
With five wins under his belt already this year, Ben is now looking ahead to the Great Britain championships which were dominated by Team Sky in 2010.
“It’s my third year of professional cycling now and, although I have the support from my team, it is a great feeling to know that I have the backing of a company like Thomson Sport. I obviously want to promote cycling as much as I can so I hope I can do this more in my role as an ambassador,” said Ben.
Packages to watch Ben, Geraint Thomas and the rest of the team battle it out at the Tour de France are available through Thomson Sport. VIP Hospitality packages start from £199pp including Grandstand seats in the ‘Grand Palais’, refreshments throughout the afternoon and a Tour de France gift.
Thomson Sport is also currently offering cycling fans the chance to go on a three-day ride with Geraint Thomas in Belgium taking in the tracks of the Tour of Flanders. Generally considered one of the world’s hardest single day races, the Tour of Flanders (known as the Ronde van Vlaanderen) is one of the five cycling ‘monuments’ and has a rich history spanning almost a century.
Riders will experience the atmosphere and history of the Flanders region and follow in the tyre tracks of many cycling icons whilst taking in famous places such as the Koppenberg, Oude Kwaremont and the legendary Muur-Kapelmuur. Other highlights include a guided tour through the Centrum Ronde van Vlaanderen (CRVV) by cycling legend Freddy Maetens, an exclusive Q and A session with Geraint and a professional photographer on hand to document the experience. Based at a luxury 4* hotel in Kortrijk, Belgium (17th – 20th August 2011), the steam bath, sauna, Jacuzzi and solarium will help to ease any muscle tension at the end of the day’s cycling. Packages start from £869pp.
For more information, visit: thomsonsport.com
