WORLD TRACK CYCLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Venue:
Pruszkow, Poland
Dates:
25-29 March
Coverage:
Watch on BBC Sport website, BBC TWO and the red button
 Kenny finished fifth in the sprint at last year's World Championships
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Olympic sprint silver medallist Jason Kenny will lead Great Britain's medal chase at the forthcoming track cycling World Championships in Poland.
Kenny is one of the favourites to win gold in the sprint in the absence of injured Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy.
The 19-strong GB squad will also be without Olympians Bradley Wiggins and Rebecca Romero.
Olympic Champion Victoria Pendleton will defend her individual world title at the event in Pruszkow.
Kenny, who has never won a medal at the World Championships and finished fifth in the sprint at last year's event in Manchester said: "It will be good to be competitive and on the podium at the World Championships.
"I'm just going to go and do my best and see what happens."
Hoy was ruled out of the event three weeks ago after failing to recover from injuries he sustained in a high-speed crash at the World Cup event in Copenhagen.
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I will be aiming for gold medals - nothing less will really do, it's what is expected of me
Olympic and World sprint champion Victoria Pendleton
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Kenny, 21, admits that he is still no match for the Scot, who would have been aiming to win a medal at his 11th successive World Championships had he been competing, but hopes to be challenging him in the near future.
"When you look at where Chris was four years ago (he was Olympic kilometre champion) and I was under-16 at the time, you wouldn't have said I'd be racing him in the (Olympic) final," he said.
"I'm not expecting anything yet, we'll just have to wait and see how we go when we get a bit closer."
Wiggins will miss the championship as he has chosen to focus on road racing this season, while Romero's future in the sport is uncertain as she has not competed this year.
Mark Cavendish, who won four Tour de France stages in 2008, was a surprise inclusion in the team.
After he was the only squad member to miss out on a medal at the 2008 Olympic Games, the Team Colombia rider had said he would not race on the track again.
Pendleton says the championships will be the toughest test of her career.
The 28-year-old is the only Briton defending an individual world title at the event in Pruszkow.
"I've only had five days off the bike after Beijing, it has been tough," Pendleton told BBC Sport.
Pendleton driven despite lack of motivation
Britain won nine golds and two silvers at the 2008 World Championships in Manchester last March, with Wiggins taking three titles and Hoy, Romero and Pendleton two each.
The success in Beijing, where Great Britain won seven golds out of 10 on the track, will increase expectations for further medals at the 2009 Championships, which begin on Wednesday.
But Pendleton believes that assumption may be unrealistic with preparations for London 2012 in full swing.
"I will be aiming for gold medals - nothing less will really do, it's what is expected of me," said Pendleton, who will defend her women's team sprint alongside Shanaze Reade.
"It's going to be the hardest competition I've ever had to compete in at this standard in this part of my career.
"In Athens, there was a stat to say that not one of the Olympic gold medallists on the track managed to retain their title in any event in the following World Championships. It's difficult to maintain form like that.
"Sometimes we have to step back and re-evaluate some of our training.
"That may mean when we approach a major competition, we may not be in the same form as we would be at the Olympic Games and therefore the performances may not as come as easily.
"But in a four-year cycle it has to be like that - you can't maintain a very high standard of performance four years in a row and jump into the Olympics and clean up. It's a lot more structured."
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606: DEBATE
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Cavendish has been named in the endurance squad, which means he could return to the madison, the event he won at last year's World Championships with Wiggins.
However, the duo came eighth behind winners Argentina in Beijing and Cavendish reportedly did not speak to Wiggins for three months after they finished.
He has since put all his efforts into success on the road, winning the Milan-St Remo Classic last weekend.
Veteran Rob Hayles retired from international track events after being told he would not be selected for Pruszkow.
So it could mean Cavendish will compete in the madison alongside fellow Manxman Peter Kennaugh, who partnered Hayles during the World Cup series.
Young Brit Lizzie Armitstead is hoping to finish what has been a stunning season so far with a flourish at the championships.
The 20-year-old from Otley has seven World Cup victories to her name and clinched the overall titles in the team pursuit and scratch with victories in each discipline in Copenhagen last month.
"I'm nervous but confident at the same time that if all goes to plan I should come away with a decent result," she said.
GB squad for world championships:
Men's sprint: Ross Edgar, Jamie Staff, Matthew Crampton, Jason Kenny, David Daniell
Men's endurance: Chris Newton, Mark Cavendish, Ed Clancy, Steven Burke, Peter Kennaugh, Jonathan Bellis
Women's sprint: Victoria Pendleton, Anna Blyth, Shanaze Reade, Jess Varnish
Women's endurance: Wendy Houvenaghel, Lizzie Armitstead, Joanna Rowsell, Katie Colclough
BBC Coverage:
Wednesday March 25
1900-2000, BBC Two and Interactive
2320-0000, BBC Two and Interactive
Thursday March 26
1900-2000, BBC Two and Interactive
2320-0000, BBC Two and Interactive
Friday March 27
1900-2000, BBC Two and Interactive
2335-0015, BBC Two and Interactive
Saturday March 28
1915-2030, BBC Two and Interactive
Sunday March 29
1500-1700, BBC Two and Interactive
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