Sign up to the European Cycling Challenge (ECC) and help Greater Manchester take on cities across Europe by monitoring cycle mileage and data using the free Naviki app.

The app helps each cyclist to contribute to the overall Greater Manchester ‘team’ mileage and, during the month-long challenge that runs from 1 – 31 May, participants can check progress and overall league position in real-time via an online league table.

GPS data and information on cycling behaviour collected over the period of the challenge will be used by Transport for Greater Manchester to inform future improvement schemes.

Those who sign up to the challenge and register to Greater Manchester will also be entered into weekly free prize draws throughout May with a chance of winning shopping vouchers worth up to £300.

Born from an idea in the city of Bologna as a small pilot with around 70 people, the ECC is now one of Europe’s largest cycling events. In 2016, 52 cities from 17 countries joined the challenge, and 46,000 people cycled four million km in a month.

To sign up for Greater Manchester and The University of Manchester team, visit the cycling challenge website for instructions on downloading the Naviki app and registering. In the app go to ‘Settings’ on the app home screen, then ‘Contests’, select ECC2017, then choose ‘Greater Manchester’ from the list of cities and under ‘Teams’ select ‘The University of Manchester’.