London 2012 Olympics: Flat route is tough for petite Emma Pooley

The 29-year-old, who was born in London and finished second in the time-trial four years ago, favours an undulating route, but London’s flat 29-kilometre course is more beneficial to bigger, more powerful riders. The petite Pooley, a formidable climber who joked about taking advantage of her fondness for chocolate and cheese in an effort to try to put on weight to increase her chances, won the World Championships time-trial in Melbourne in 2010 and 12 months later finished third in Copenhagen as Germany’s Judith Arndt triumphed.

“Ever since Beijing the time-trial has been my thing,” Pooley said. “I was really pleased last year at the World Championships, because it was a flat course and I surprised myself by doing better than I expected.

“But – and I don’t want to sound like a whinging loser – it’s not the ideal course for me. There’s no way I can turn my physiology from being small to being a big, powerful rider. I don’t need a mountain, but up and down is better for me.”

Lizzie Armitstead, who on Sunday claimed Britain’s first medal of the Games with silver in the road race, is also set to ride and has an outside medal chance.

“I’m looking forward to riding an event without any pressure and enjoying being pushed round by the crowd,” Armitstead said. “Time-trials aren’t really my forte, but it’s something that I will probably look to work on in the future.”