Reade pleased with start

Reade was pleased to get her campaign up and running after kicking her heels for much of the Games.

She said: "It felt good. The first time you go out you're always going to be a bit rusty but it was great to compete in front of the home crowd.

"I've been sitting around watching all the Olympic titles being won in the velodrome. I'm just glad to be out and competing myself."

Britain men’s BMX rider Liam Phillips denied he had home advantage as he declared himself satisfied in opening his London 2012 Olympic campaign.

The 23-year-old, who was doubtful for his second Games after he broke his collarbone in May this year, qualified in 12th place for the elimination round in a time of 38.719 seconds.

But Phillips refuted suggestions by his rivals that he and fellow BMX rider Reade were able to prepare on a track that he rates very highly.

“Unfortunately it is not a home track – we have not had any additional access,” said Phillips, who won silver at the world BMX championships time trial in 2012.

“As much as the other countries have turned to us to ask, 'What's it like to ride on your home track?’ my answer is always, 'my practice must be good if you think that myself and Shanaze are going that fast'.

"The Americans built a replica, the Dutch did, yet we are not allowed on the actual track, which is fantastic, absolutely fantastic, and it's Olympic standard.

“I love it. This is the sort of the level that all the athletes want to play at.

“The test event course was stupid as far as I'm concerned. I didn't race, but I came and watched. It was just too much, but this is perfect.

"There will be crashes – hopefully I will not be on the receiving end of one, but that's one of the things that attract general members of the public to the sport.”

Phillips is hoping to tap into the buzz around track cycling, with a home crowd spurring on the riders to glory after the success of Sir Chris Hoy – whose sprint team Phillips almost joined as man one.

He is hoping that the home crowd will put off his rivals as he looks to make the best possible start from a seeding place lower than he wanted.

He said: “It's not great – it's not going to set the world on fire. I know that, but you never know, the other guys have not experienced crowds and pressure like this.

“I'm satisfied, but I'm just looking forward to racing now.

"We had the World Championships in Birmingham ten weeks ago. On the Saturday I crashed and broke my collarbone so I didn't really get to experience it.

“But it's nothing like this, there are 6000 people here going absolutely mental. At the moment cycling in the UK is on a massive high off the back of the success of the velodrome, which you can't help but see coming out of the first turn."