AN event to celebrate all things French wouldn’t be complete without a bit of cycling.

So, this weekend’s third edition Altrincham French Festival brings a touch of the Tour de France to Stamford Park.

And to also help burn off a few calories before sampling some of the sumptuous food and drink on offer on July 11 and 12, visitors can enjoy a vigorous fitness session.

Five instructors from Pure Gym in Altrincham, led by general manager Antonio Scimeca, will take two 30 minute classes of their ‘Grit and Hiit’ workouts prior to the official opening ceremony at 1pm by Altrincham and Sale West MP, Graham Brady.

The classes will run alongside an Under 10’s tag rugby union tournament, played to Rugby Football Union guidelines and organized by Altrincham Kersal Club, as Manchester prepares to welcome the World Cup later in the year.

And keeping with the sporting mode, Pure Gym will supply four static bikes for festival goers to join an afternoon chain gang.

“Pure Gym recently announced Sir Chris Hoy as one of our ambassadors so it seems fitting, especially with the Tour underway, to have a cycling element at the festival,” says Antonio.

“Throughout the afternoon visitors can attempt to see how fast they can ride one kilometre.

“There won’t be a gold medal for the quickest rider but we will be putting up a prize. There will be other giveaways during the Festival, including one day free passes.”

French star Francois Pervis established the 1K track record of 56.303 seconds in 2013 while six times Olympic gold medallist Hoy, now based in Cheshire, clocked 1:00.71 in winning his 2004 title in Athens.

“There won’t be any records broken at the festival but it’s a chance to have some fun and a workout at the same time,” adds Antonio.

“It’s the same with Grit and HIIT. It’s a regular feature on the timetables at Pure Gym and becoming very popular.

“It’s a total body workout and helps you burn off a lot of calories but not really for beginners,” he advises.

Festival Director, Zainul Sachak, has confirmed he will be getting on his bike and might be also persuaded to go for a Grit and HIIT burn.

“I’m sure the workouts (at 10 am and 11am) will be well attended and we can set some sort of mass participation record for this type of class. Mums and dads can join in while the rugby tournament is in full swing.”

Admission to the French Festival is free and organisers promise fine food, wine and entertainment.

There’s a live demo of graffiti art by Manchester based Russ Meehan, magic by illusionist, Guillaume Vallee, music from the Stockport Accordion Players, Altrincham’s own women’s choir, Absolute Belters, Manchester based jazz group, Swing Commanders, French singer, Laura Esther plus numerous other activities including face painting, art exhibition, treasure hunt and the results of a Schools’ art competition.

In addition and with £4,000 raised in the past two years, Marie Curie Cancer Care will be holding a raffle draw throughout Sunday’s celebrations.

The centre piece of the weekend will be Saturday night’s ‘Bastille’ dinner; a three course gastronomical treat, including live music from North West based jazz group, Gobble-de-Gook, led by French band leader, Xtof Lheureux, local opera singer, Jayne Wilson, plus a fireworks display to guarantee the evening goes with a bang!

With a 200 limit and tickets priced at £30 potential diners are advised to book early or miss out on a culinary treat.

A full programme and timings can be found on the official website www.altyfrenchfestival.co.uk Also follow and tweet @AltyFrenchFest while there is also more information at https://www.facebook.com/AltyFrenchFest