Sir Chris Hoy backs GB to come out on top at World Championships
Last Updated: 02/03/16 6:19pm
Sir Chris Hoy has backed Great Britain to win "three or four gold medals" at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships this week.
Sir Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish and Laura Trott are among the British riders involved in the five-day, event which gets under way at London's Lee Valley VeloPark on Wednesday.
Having claimed just three silvers at last year's World Championships in Paris, 11-time world champion Hoy is expecting a marked improvement this week.
He told Sky Sports News HQ: "I think you have to temper expectation, but at the same time, I think we will do really well. I see GB as the top nation at the end of the week.
"It won't be one of those amazing eight or nine-medal whitewashes. I think we will see three or four gold medals and a smattering of silver and bronze and I think that will be potentially enough to be top nation."
Wiggins is going for a ninth world title, while Cavendish is returning to the championships for the first since 2009 in his bid to realise his dream of winning an Olympic medal.
Cavendish has suffered Olympic heartbreak on two occasions - on the track at Beijing in 2008 and on the road at London 2012 - and Hoy expects a bold showing from the Manxman this week.
He said: "I don't think he necessarily has to win but I think he has to lay down a serious marker that will make it worth his while persevering between now and Rio.
"I don't doubt he can do it. He has the ability and the physical attributes, but there are so many factors in an omnium. It is such a difficult event to control. I think everybody will just be delighted to see him back on the track.
"Every event is an exciting story and it's such a great chance for the fans to see the GB team and, for the cyclists, it's a last chance to lay down a marker before Rio."
