Burke cool on omnium medal bid at London 2012

STEVEN Burke's Olympic road map was torn to shreds last year - and he admits he faces the toughest two years of his life if he's to compete at London 2012.

PRIORITIES: Steven Burke insists his Olympic focus remains trained on the team pursuit - rather than the omnium (Getty Images)

The 22-year-old claimed bronze in his specialist individual pursuit discipline at the Beijing Olympics, only for the event to be cut from the Games programme late last year.

Burke's hopes now rest with the team pursuit and he joined forces with Ed Clancy, Ben Swift and Andy Tennant to claim silver at the recent World Track Cycling Championships in Copenhagen.

But with three Olympic champions - Bradley Wiggins, Geraint Thomas and Jason Queally - waiting in the wings, Burke admits his place is far from secure.

"It is disappointing that the individual pursuit, an event I won bronze in Beijing, is gone from the Olympic programme," said Burke.

"But if the team pursuit had been dropped for us that would have been worse because it is the event everyone wants to do.

"It takes four really good riders to make the perfect team and you don't need a team of individual pursuit champions to be successful.

"There are now quite a lot of riders in Britain wanting to get on the pursuit team. At the moment, the five who went to Copenhagen are the best five and we aim to prove that throughout the year.

"It has been really quite interesting having someone like Jason Queally come on to the team and it is really good to see what he can do.

"He has had some time away but like any of us he will want to improve over the next two years."

The 2009 European pursuit champion travelled as a reserve for the omnium in Denmark - a multi-event discipline designed to compensate for the cuts to the Olympic programme.

But despite the event seemingly representing his best chance of competing for individual honours in London, Burke insists he's unlikely to bid for a place.

"If it stayed on one day and at shorter distances that would be a benefit to me but if they are going to split it over a few days I would side more with the team pursuit," he added.

"Ed Clancy is doing it at the moment I wish him the best. I will be putting everything into the team pursuit until I hear otherwise and I honestly think the way the omnium is looking to pan out it will suit someone like Chris Newton, Geraint Thomas or Ben Swift more than me."