The London 2012 Olympic time trial will start and finish in Henry VIII’s former home – Hampton Court Palace.

The full route has yet to be announced but it is expected to be “in the same neck of the woods” as the road race route, which was announced last week. 

“It will be a fantastic setting, and the main courtyard will offer us plenty of space to set up stands and all the necessary requirements for the competitors and broadcasters,” a London 2012 spokeswoman told insidethegames. 

The men’s and women’s medals time trial will both be decided on August 1, and it will be one of few events free to watch. 

Emma Pooley won Olympic time trial silver at the Beijing Games in 2008, before upgrading to world gold in 2010. Two-time world silver medallist David Millar is banned from the Olympic Games by the British Olympic Association after failing a doping test in 2004. 

The men’s and women’s road races will take place on July 28 and 29 respectively, passing Hampton Court Palace en-route from London into the Surrey Hills, before returning to finish on The Mall.