Organisers Predict Tough Tour Of Britain
Organisers for this year’s Tour of Britain, which starts in September after the Olympics, have described the route as the toughest yet.
The eight-stage race will start in Ipswich for the first time, with the opening four stages expected to suit the sprinters in the peloton.
The climbers then take over with hilly stages around Stoke, Wales and Dartmoor, preceding a finish on the cobbles of Guildford in Surrey.
Starts on 9th September, the race will feature a selection of riders from the Britain-based Team Sky, although it is not known whether their lead cyclists Mark Cavendish or Bradley Wiggins will take part. No British rider has won the Tour since it was restarted in 2004.
Both are scheduled to ride in the 2012 Tour de France in July before heading to London for the 2012 Olympic road races.
The opening stage, which is also the longest of the Tour, finishes at the Norfolk Showgrounds on the outskirts of Norwich, while the second stage is also expected to result in a sprint finish after crossing the Pennines.
Scotland hosts the third stage, where riders will race from Jedburgh in the Borders to Dumfries where they will tackle three circuits of a finish loop.
Torrential rain and storms prevented a proposed finish on Blackpool promenade last year but the race returns this year for an expected sprint in the shadow of Blackpool Tower on stage four.
The hill climbers will come into their own from stage five, which starts and finishes in Stoke and takes in more than 2,000m of climbing around Staffordshire and Cannock Chase.
After that, there is more than 3,000m of climbing through the Brecon Beacons in Wales, ending with two ascents of the Caerphilly mountain climb.
The following day, the riders navigate the Dartmoor hills before heading to Surrey for the final stage and an uphill finish on the cobbled Guildford High Street.
Five teams have so far confirmed for the race – Team Sky, Garmin-Barracuda, GreenEdge, Vacansoleil-DCM and Liquigas-Cannondale.
