Police step in to help Lizzie Armitstead find lucky sunglasses

Police have stepped in to help cycling sensation Lizzie Armitstead find the lucky sunglasses she lost clinching silver for Team GB.

The 23-year-old dropped her shades as she battled for a courageous second place in Sunday's 140 km road race.

The British weather must take a fair share of the blame as the Yorkshire flier was forced to lift the pair of Oakley shades from her eyes to enable her to see through the driving rain.

Some time after that they tumbled onto the road behind.

After hearing about the shedding of the shades, Surrey Police are now helping to relocate the athlete's lucky charm before she competes again, in Wednesday's time trial event.

The force today made an appeal on Twitter in the hope of reaching whoever among the thousands of supporters along the route who may have picked them up.

The race left London and powered its way through Surrey before returning to the capital for the thrilling sprint finish on The Mall.

"Lost: 1 pair lucky Oakley sunglasses. Owner @L-ArmiTstead," read the police's post.

"If found, pls hand them in. She'd like them back for the time trial on Weds."

In the wake of her heroics on the The Mall, Armitstead was sanguine about the loss.

"I hate racing in the heat," she said yesterday.

"The harsher the conditions the better for me.

"I've been praying for rain, particularly when we were in the breakaway and there was a real downpour.

"The break had more chance of working in those conditions. I couldn't see and had to take my glasses off and lost my lucky glasses, but never mind."

Armitstead's agent today confirmed that the missing shades had yet to materialise.

But she stressed that the manufacturer had provided a replacement pair.

Whether they prove as lucky remains to be seen.