Former Olympic and world champion Chris Boardman today set a new world one-hour cycling record in the final race of his career. The 32-year-old Englishman covered 30.723 miles in one hour, eclipsing the record of the legendary Belgian Eddy Merckx set in 1972 set in Mexico City of 30.716 miles.Boardman surpassed the 28-year-old mark by about 11 metres, sprinting furiously over the last few laps and then collapsing into the arm of his long-time manger Roger Legeay, who persuaded him to turn professional in 1993.Boardman, who has had a poor year and a poor Olympics, was cheered on trackside by his wife Sally Anne who, with Legeay and 2,500 screaming fans, pushed him over the last few laps.In 1996, Boardman set the one-hour record - 35.031 miles - riding a bicycle made form space-age materials like Kevlar and carbon fiber. And he used aerodynamically efficient components, helmet and clothing.Since then, the world governing body of cycling - the UCI - changed its mind and decided to "set aside" Boardman's record, outlawing technological innovations of the last 20 years.It has ruled all future records must be set on an orthodox bicycle with a steel frame and devoid of any streamlining or aerodynamic aids.Boardman got the first shot at establishing the new record in his final appearance before retiring. It was an attempt clouded by confusion.Less than 24 hours before making the ride, Boardman said he believed any distance he covered would become the new record. But a few hours before attempting the record he was told he had to surpass Merckx's standard to become the new record holder.A UCI spokesman described Merckx's old mark as a "benchmark" rather than a record. However, in statement on September 9, the cycling body contradicted itself and said the "UCI Hour Record is the one Eddy Merckx achieved in Mexico."Boardman's old record on the hi-tech bike had been called the "Best Hour Performance" by the UCI.The Liverpool-born rider won the Olympic pursuit gold medal in 1992 and was world pursuit and world road time-trial champion in 1994.In 1996, he won the world pursuit for the second time with a 4,000-metre world record of 4 minutes 11.114 seconds, which still stands.

He is also a three-time winner of the Tour de France prologue time trial.. Internet backers are now going head-to-head in the quest for better value. Internet backers are now going head-to-head in the quest for better value. Internet punters now have the chance to eliminate the bookmaker and reap the benefits of betting between themselves.

It could be the end of the bookmaking industry as we know it.There have been a proliferation of internet bookmakers springing up in recent years, luring punters with promises of low or no-tax betting, free bets and other spurious offers.Flutter , however, offers something completely different. At this web site, punters can bet between themselves, offering and taking prices from each other, while Flutter takes 2.5 per cent commission on the return from each transaction from the winner.Flutter is the brainchild of Vince Monical and Josh Hannah, its founders and co-Presidents, two Americans who began betting with each other socially and became so hooked on person-to-person betting they decided it had e-commerce potential.Hannah, 29, and Monical, 30, are an intellectually formidable pairing with plenty of good old fashioned American "drive" to boot.Hannah and Monical ransacked their connections to raise $39m (£25m) from financial institutions before boldly upping sticks to move to the United Kingdom, where they obtained a full UK bookmaker's licence and registered their company.Founded in February, 1999 and launched on Grand National day this year, Flutter has failed thus far to make a significant impact upon the UK's gambling consciousness, but the potential it offers for punters is considerable.Betting-shop punters must contend not only with nine per cent tax, but the bookmakers' overround, which is about two per cent per runner and therefore averages around 20 per cent.Flutter punters, however, providing they play the game and offer each other odds with no built-in profit margin other than that required to offset Flutter 's commission, can create a more competitive environment.Supply and demand is god and, at present, Flutter suffers from an insufficient volume of customers to create a competitive market. Moreover, the inalienable mathematical truth of levying a commission on total stakes is that anyone wanting to act as a bookmaker is forced to operate with an overround of said commission (in this case 2.5 per cent) per runner minus one - the winning punter pays the commission on the winner - in order to break even.However, Flutter acknowledges the arithmetic flaws in their set-up and will restrict their commission to just winnings at odds of 3-1 or above from mid-November. When they do, opportunities for would-be layers and punters at their web site will be much improved.At present, the site attracts a depressing number of two-bit time wasters. There is nothing wrong with only being prepared to lay a bet to lose a few pounds - everyone must cut their cloth according to their pocket - but the character who was offering 4-7 ante-post about the 10-1 chance Tryphaena for the Cesarewitch makes a better case for the return of the death penalty than any Tory MP can ever hope to do.Flutter-com clearly have some work to do, in terms of educating their clients to use the site to offer greater value for all, rather than try and take each other for a ride, before the idea moves towards realising its full potential.The site has a very "tabloid" feel at present, which might discourage the serious punter.