One of the founders of a new cycling academy in Invercargill says it will help launch young Southlanders onto the international sporting stage.
The Southland Cycling Academy, in association with the Southern Institute of Technology, will begin training half a dozen budding cyclists when it opens in February.
Cycling Southland's executive Tony Hammington says there weren't many options for cyclists in the region wanting to step up to an elite level, and the academy will rectify that.
Based at the organisation's velodrome in Invercargill, it will focus on recruiting 17-to-22-year-olds for a 40-week term.
