If you want to watch a potential future Olympic cycling champion there’s no better place than the Mildenhall Cycling Rally.

The cycling festival will take place over this August Bank Holiday weekend at Riverside Middle School, starting today.

“The rally is known throughout the Great British cycling community as one of the best all-round cycling weekends, that appeals to cyclists of all ages and especially families,” said Mark Burchett the chairman of the organising club, Mildenhall Cycling Club.

“It can boast, among its many thousands of competitors over the years, stars such as Nicole Cook, Ben Swift and of course Victoria Pendleton, who was a member of the Mildenhall club when she was growing up.

“It’s grass-tracks like this where these young riders cut their teeth and there can be no denying that the skills they learnt have stood them in very good stead on the top tracks around the world.”

He added: “We cannot let the moment pass us by without celebrating the career of Victoria Pendleton, who is an honorary gold member of our club.

“The Rally Programme will feature a special front cover to commemorate her achievements, with her career lasting from 1997 when she won her first National Grass-Track Championship medal to the London Olympics in 2012, where she won Silver in the Olympic Women’s Sprint.”

The grass-track will form the centre-piece of the rally, with other supporting events everyday from noon.

Today’s track programme is devoted solely to under-16s, while the seniors, including nearly 20 women, will contest the racing on the Sunday and Monday.

The highlight of these will be the National 800m Championship. The entries received so far, include Ben Elliott (a current World Masters Champion), Neil Withington, Dave Heald (an ex-National Squad member) Lewis Meadows, John McClelland and Andrew Leverton (who is the current national 400m Grass-Track champion and leader of the National Short-Distance League)

Other competitive events will include a Madison Cyclo-Cross, an under-17s Children’s Duathlon and under-16s Go-Ride Skilful Riding.

On the touring front, CTC (Cyclists Touring Club) Suffolk will be organising 57, 100, 200 and 300km Audax Rides on the Saturday.

For those that want something more relaxing, Mildenhall Cycling Club will have their range of touring leaflets, offering a variety of scenery of varying distances.

There will be a trade show (Sunday and Monday) open to the public, a cycle jumble, quiz nights and children’s activities including face-painting and a bouncy castle.