British Cycling’s official bicycle partner, Cervélo, has launched the bike that Britain’s best track cyclists will ride in their quest for glory at Rio 2016.

The Cervélo T5GB has been collaboratively developed by the manufacturers and British Cycling, bringing together world-leading experts from both organisations.

Presenting the T5GB - #engineeredtogether by British Cycling and @Cervelo for Rio 2016 https://t.co/ght8DjVexkhttps://t.co/ZIhZvo9M9I

— British Cycling (@BritishCycling) June 3, 2016

The British-made bike – developed over the course of hundreds of hours of wind-tunnel analysis, stress testing and computer simulation – will be the most aerodynamic model the Great Britain Cycling Team has ever ridden, and despite being extremely light is built to withstand the power and force produced by some of the world’s best track riders.

The T5GB has been developed using expertise from Formula 1, with work on the bike’s development taking place at sites in Oxford, Leicestershire and Nottingham, as well as British Cycling’s Manchester base, the National Cycling Centre.

Its development has also been supported by the Research and Innovation (R&I) team at the English Institute of Sport (EIS) which aims to ensure British athletes are among the best equipped in the world.

Cervélo engineering director Sean McDermott said: “The challenge of developing the T5GB was significant. British Cycling’s track team is at the top of its sport, and its innovative approach has certainly contributed to that success.”

The early goal of the five-year partnership, which began in May of 2015, was to minutely understand the needs and performance objectives of the British riders.

McDermott continued: “Next, we translated that knowledge into targets for the T5GB. The uniquely short time frame and ambitious targets made this a challenging project, but now that the new bike is ready, it’s clear that it was well worth it.

“We can’t wait to see the T5GB in action in Rio.”

Tony Purnell, head of technical development for the Great Britain Cycling Team, is similarly enthusiastic about the results: “The intelligence and expertise brought together by the partnership between British Cycling and Cervélo is unparalleled and, in record time, has delivered a bike which we are very excited about as we get closer to Rio.

“Over recent years, our programme has produced some of the very best track cyclists in the world, as is evidenced by their tremendous success in recent Olympic and Paralympic Games.

"It is our constant aim to ensure that the best athletes in the world are supported by the best equipment in the world. It’s about the detail – achieving the very best of everything.

“This means that, even after the fantastic success we enjoyed at London 2012, we have been determined to work alongside Cervélo to build and improve on the equipment that has served us so well in the recent past. Without question, this bike represents that quest for continuous improvement.”