The 2016 British Cycling National Road Championships conclude on Sunday 26 June with the road race in Stockton-on-Tees.

Elite men’s and women’s champions will be crowned, earning the right to wear the national champion’s jersey for the next year.

Action starts at 9am with the women’s road race with the men’s event getting underway at 1pm. Under-23 champions will also be crowned in both races.

Men’s road race

Peter Kennaugh will be denied the chance to become the first ever three-time winner of the road race with a broken collarbone sustained at the Tour of California last month ruling him out.

With a new champion guaranteed, perhaps the biggest name in the field is Mark Cavendish. The 2013 British champion and 2011 world champion will look to take the title in Stockton ahead of his bid to claim an early yellow jersey at next month’s Tour de France.

If the expected sprint finish materialises, the Dimension Data rider would be favourite to be a strong contender, but he will face stiff competition in the north-east.

2012 champion Ian Stannard, of Team Sky, will want to become a two-time champion, and with Ben Swift, Alex Peters, Andy Fenn and Luke Rowe also in the Sky ranks, the WorldTour outfit can adapt to various race scenarios.

One Pro Cycling return to Britain having performed superbly since making the step up to a UCI Professional Continental team for 2016.

Thomas Baylis, Josh Hunt, Yanto Barker, Kristian House and Chris Opie are part of a robust team that could deliver a surprise in Stockton.

2012 Olympic omnium bronze medallist Ed Clancy, will be in action in the JLT Condor colours, alongside Jon Mould. Clancy, who missed much of the track season through injury, will be hoping to show he has fully recovered ahead of potential Olympic selection.

NFTO, prolific in the Motorpoint Spring Cup Series, include the in-form Ian Bibby and Ed Bradbury, while Team Raleigh, Madison Genesis and Pedal Heaven all field formidable line-ups.    

In the hunt for the under-23 men’s title, Team Wiggins could provide the winner with Chris Latham and newly crowned points race world champion Jon Dibben among the favourites.

100% me’s Gabz Cullaigh, Mark Stewart and Ollie Wood have shown great form on international duty in the Under-23 Nations’ Cup as has Axeon Hagens Berman CT’s Tao Geoghegan Hart.

Women’s road race

In the women’s race, all eyes will be on the reigning world champion Lizzie Armitstead.

The three-time national champion took the British title in Lincolnshire in 2015 and the Boels Dolmans Cycling Team rider has shown terrific form so far in 2016, adding The Women's Tour title to an impressive list of honours.

Armitstead will be joined by British cyclo-cross champion Nikki Harris in the Boels Dolmans Cycling Team. Harris has earned a place as a domestique in the Rio road race and will relish the opportunity to show her skills in Stockton.

Dani King, Olympic team pursuit champion, has swapped track for road and will wear the Wiggle High5 colours, as will Anna Christian and Lucy Garner.

One of the riders in the best form in 2015 so far is Women’s Road Series leader Nikki Juniper.

The Team Ford Ecoboost rider has dominated the series in 2016 as she looks to claim a hat-trick of titles and will hope to continue her recent results in Stockton.

Podium Ambition p/b Club La Santa’s Dame Sarah Storey is another of the key names in the women’s field who will have an eye on a podium position, as will Liv-Plantur’s Molly Weaver.

Last year’s runner-up in the road race, Alice Barnes (Drops Cycling Team), was the highest placed under-23 rider in the field and will be confident of repeating that performance, despite a notable line-up of young female riders.

Barnes’s challenge will likely come from an impressive Team Breeze line-up, which boasts Emily Kay, Danielle Khan, Emily Nelson and Annasley Park among their ranks.

Strong performances are also expected from Podium Ambition p/b Club La Santa’s Grace Garner, Abby-Mae Parkinson of Servetto Footon and Boot Out Breast Cancer’s Bethany Crumpton.

The course

The road races start in the centre of Stockton before heading out of town where the riders will complete six laps (women) and 12 laps of a 13.4 kilometre circuit that takes in the villages of Carlton, Thorpe Thewles and Redmarshall.

Riders then return to Stockton town centre and enter the 6.7 kilometre finishing circuit for three laps in the women’s race and six in the men’s, before racing for the line on the High Street.

Schedule

9am: Women’s road race starts
10.45am: Race joins finishing circuit
11.30am: Women’s road race finishes
11.45am: Women’s road race presentation
1pm: Men’s road race starts
5pm: Race joins finishing circuit
6pm: Men’s road race finishes
6.15pm: Men’s road race presentation

How to follow

• Follow the action with updates and images in our live blog from 9am on Sunday.
• Follow @BritishCycling on Twitter for updates, images and videos.  
• Coverage on Eurosport from 3:30pm, showing highlights of the women’s race and first part of the men’s race followed by the finish of the men’s race live.