Sky News Olympics correspondent Orla Chennaoui will experience some of the pain and ecstasy of the 2012 medal hopefuls when she takes to the saddle for this year’s Etape Caledonia.
Orla will swap the safety of the television studio for the open roads of Highland Perthshire for the annual race in May.
A keen cyclist, she has been in training for the 81-mile Highland Perthshire course for several months and is the first “celebrity signing” unveiled by the event team this year.
She will join the 5000 cyclists who have signed up to take part in Macmillan Cancer Support Etape Caledonia, which sold out six months ahead of time.
She said, “I’m really excited to be taking part in the Etape Caledonia. I’ve never done it before but friends and family have and they tell me it’s fantastic. I’ve even managed to rope my mum in to try it out.
“I’ve travelled around Scotland a lot but never on two wheels so although it’ll be a challenge and I can’t wait for the experience.”
Etape Caledonia, now in its fifth year, has grown in popularity since its inception from just over 1000 participants in 2007.
One of the joys for the thousands of watchers is to spot the famous faces crossing the finishing line. Past entrants include TV presenters Georgie Thompson, Ben Fogle and Aggie McKenzie. Cycling greats Graeme Obree and Mark Beaumont have also taken part.
The event is expected to pump over £1 million pounds into the local economy when it returns on May 15.