If you're looking to be a mentee, ideally you have an idea of what you'd like to work on during this and the next season of racing and an openness to learn. That way, we can match you up with someone who can help you to achieve those goals.

 A lot of the time, those wanting to be a mentor don't believe they have enough experience or were 'good enough' as a racer. It's more about your willingness to share your experiences and support a mentee than your achievements.

The programme is open to all women, all trans and all non binary people involved in racing or wanting to start racing bikes. We are primarily focused on supporting those racing on the road, circuit and TT disciplines, but please do still apply if you race outside of this as we might be able to match you up.

 You don’t need to be based in London. Sometimes we feel that mentor/mentee relationships benefit from being in person, but this isn't always the case. This will be reviewed based on your application.

Sarah King & Ali Sheehan. Sarah is the programme lead and Founder of the London Academy. She's joined by Ali, taking the role of Lead Mentor after being part of the programme over the last year. Sarah & Ali have raced bikes for years, across different teams, clubs and disciplines and met whilst racing on the same team.

 Ali and Sarah both work full time jobs outside of their above voluntary roles, so please be mindful of this.

The London Academy Mentoring Programme is inspired by an experience Sarah has had throughout her cycling journey. For over 15 years, Sarah's been in contact with a mentor who has not just shaped how she's experienced racing, but how she's approached challenges and setbacks over the years.

 We want to be able to give that opportunity to others in the cycling community, to help navigate the sport and better themselves on and off the bike.

After a successful application, you'll be matched with a your mentor/mentee. There will be a compulsory kick off meeting delivered online, after which you'll contact your mentor/mentee to begin the mentoring relationship.

 Throughout the programme there are check ins and opportunities for further learning and support.

We're unsure about how many applications we'll receive for mentors/mentees as it's the first time we've opened up the programme. If we don't find you match this time round, we'll keep you in mind for future pairings and invite you to any workshops we run.

Sometimes it's tricky to understand how a mentor could support you. These are some of the main things we find our mentors help with:

• A safe space to discuss your bike racing questions, fears, worries

• Provide information on how to approach races, tactics, course parcours, fueling strategy

• Support to keep on track with your goals

• Support with planning your calendar

• Help you to build confidence

• Help to progress your bike racing career

A lot of our mentors have been through this, transiting from full time, to part time, to not racing at all. We think this can be the perfect time to support a less experienced racer, but also, a chance to connect you with another mentor who may have been through a similar experience.

 Flag this on your application and we'll see if we can support you too.