When Sir Bradley Wiggins pedalled to victory in the 2012 Tour de France, and won an Olympic Gold the same year, the charismatic cycling champion inspired the nation to get on two wheels.

And with the 2014 Tour de France making its way through Yorkshire this summer, cycling is set to become even more of a ‘buzz sport’.

Bingley physiotherapist Ian Blackburn has worked in elite level sport for more than a decade, at events including the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and the 2009 Tour de France. He has worked with some of the world’s top sport stars, including Jessica Ennis.

Ian is currently contracted with a professional cycling team competing in this year’s Tour de France. The MTN-Qhubeka-Samsung team, partly-sponsored by the World Bicycle Relief charity, is based in South Africa and will be the first African registered team in the Tour de France.

Ian, who recently returned from the team’s training camp in Majorca, has worked with them since last year and will join them at this year’s Tour de France, helping cyclists manage injuries and maintain fitness throughout the gruelling race.

“Requirements vary from team to team, but on a day-to-day basis, it’s injury treatment – older injuries as well as anything from the race – and managing muscle, balance and bike positioning. Other than that it’s case of patching them up and getting them back on their bikes!” says Ian. “Going to the training camp allowed more time to evaluate the team, and carry out a full fitness MOT.”

Ian, who owns and is lead physiotherapist at Elite Physio in Cottingley, says common cycling injuries include soft tissue damage and repetitive strain to knees, hips and lower back. As well as general wear and tear there are fractures and other injuries, caused by bike crashes and falls, to areas like collar bones, legs, forearms and ankles.

Each Tour de France team has several therapy staff members, including physiotherapists and masseurs. “The cyclists have a soft tissue massage every day. I have some osteopathic skills, too, so I’m often called on for that,” says Ian.

“There are also mechanics, a team doctor and nutritionists. The roles are diverse, from carting suitcases around to making drinks and food. It looks glamorous but it’s hard work – it’s an ongoing circus and we’re working up to 17 hours a day.

“At the Olympics, I was based in one venue for two weeks which was a lot less stressful, in terms of logistics, but the work was pretty much the same. I was a team physio with track and field athletes and the wheelchair basketball team.”

At the Majorca camp, Ian spent up to seven hours a day on training with the MTN-Qhubeka-Samsung team. “In football terms, they’re like a Premiership team, with great diversity. Over a three-year programme, the aim is for them to reach professional tour status by year three,” he says.

“The training is technical and specific, on mountains and sprints. It’s fairly structured, like with athletics – cycling isn’t much different to running in terms of endurance – but with cycling there’s two thirds more training required.

“People watch cycling on TV and think they’re going to be the next Bradley Wiggins, but you need to put in 50 hours of training a week, cycling 260 kilometres a day, to reach that level. The Tour de France covers about 175 kilometres a day.”

A former semi-professional cyclist, Ian rides regularly. He qualified as a physiotherapist in 2000 and has worked in elite performance sports since 2002.

As well as working internationally and with national sports governing bodies, he provides physiotherapy for pro-cyclists in Yorkshire and for track and field athletes in Keighley, Craven and Leeds.

Based at Cottingley Manor Consulting Rooms, Elite Physio works with world-class and local athletes from sports including cycling, athletics, swimming, gymnastics, football, rugby, tennis, boxing and skiing, as well as military groups. Therapies include physiotherapy, sports therapy, massage and nutrition, podiatry, and bike-fit biomechanical positional analysis.

Therapists – working with sports leaders such as Olympic and Paralympic medalists, professional cyclists, premiership footballers, Superleague rugby players and UK athletics champions – operate with a network of doctors and other specialists in areas like musculoskeletal injury, muscle and joint injuries, spinal problems, sport, strength and performance coaching and physiological assessments.

Ian has seen a massive boost to cycling over recent years, thanks largely to the Bradley Wiggins effect. “It has become very fashionable and its growth as a sport has exploded,” he says. “There has been an increase in people spending £5,000-plus on a bike – and the clothing and accessories are big business now – but you don’t need to spend a lot to take it up. Once you’ve got a bike, you’re up and running.

“The Tour de France coming to Yorkshire will be a huge inspiration, especially for children. When Wimbledon is on TV, it does wonders to promote tennis – having the highest level cyclists in the world coming here will do the same for cycling.”

For more about Elite Physio call 0780 5717042, e-mail info@elitephysio.co.uk or visit elitephysio.co.uk.