The route of the 2018 Tour of Britain has been revelaed, and the highlight is an uphill team time trial. Visiting only England and Wales this year, the wealth terrain offered by Scotland is overlooked for this year.
Tour of Britain 2018: Key information
Dates: Sunday 2nd September to Sunday 9th September
Grand Départ: Pembrey Country Park, Carmarthenshire
Finale: London
Countries visited: Wales, England
UK television coverage: ITV
Tour of Britain 2018 route
Tour of Britain 2018 route: Stage-by-stage
Stage 1, Sunday 2nd September: Pembrey Country Park to Newport, 175km
Stage 2, Monday 3rd September: Cranbrook to Barnstaple, 174km
Stage 3, Tuesday 4th September: Bristol to Bristol, 125km
Stage 4, Wednesday 5th September: Nuneaton to Royal Leamington Spa, 183km
Stage 5, Thursday 6th September: Cockermouth to Whinlatter Pass, Team Time Trial, 14km
Stage 6, Friday 7th September: Barrow-in-Furness to Whinlatter Pass, 169km
Stage 7, Saturday 8th September: West Bridgford to Mansfield, 223km
Stage 8, Sunday 9th September: The London Stage, 77km
Tour of Britain 2018: Live TV guide
The entire 2018 Tour of Britain is expected to be shown live on ITV4.
Tour of Britain 2018: Start list
2017 Tour of Britain final General Classification top 10
1. Lars Boom (NED) LottoNL-Jumbo, 30:56:24
2. Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) Dimension Data, at 0:08
3. Stefan Kung (SUI) BMC Racing, at 0:10
4. Victor Campenaerts (BEL) LottoNL-Jumbo, at 0:13
5. Michal Kwiatkowski (POL) Team Sky, at 0:18
6. Jos Van Emden (NED) Lotto-NL Jumbo, at same time
7. Geraint Thomas (GBR) Team Sky, at 0:24
8. Tony Martin (GER) Katusha-Alpecin, at 0:25
9. Owain Doull (GBR) Team Sky, at 0:33
10. Ryan Mullen (IRL) Cannondale-Drapac, at 0:38
Tour of Britain 2017
The route for the 2017 Tour of Britain is bookended by the capitals of Scotland and Wales, while also visiting parts of the UK that the race has never been to before. However, it eschews the recent tradition of a final stage visit to London for the first time since 2012, and avoids the capital entirely.
A total of nine new venues will host the race in 2017, which has brought on OVO Energy as a headline sponsor, on a route that totals 1,310km.
Stage 1 saw riders cover 188km from Edinburgh to Kelso and the opening win was taken from a reduced bunch sprint by Caleb Ewan (Orica-Scott).
Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data) did not feature in the sprint but his teammate Edvald Boasson Hagen lunged for the line to take second.
The cobbled finishing funnel almost wreaked havoc with riders' wheels skidding about as they sped for the line.
Stage 2 took riders from Kielder Water & Forest Park to Blyth over 211km, but it wasn't until about the last 200 metres that anything of interest really happened.
Boasson Hagen crossed the line first but was later deemed to have impeded Elia Viviani, and the stage win was given to the Team Sky sprinter.
The associated time bonus also moved Vivani into the overall lead of the race.
The following day, on Stage 3, the overall lead changed hands again when the leader's jersey was returned to Ewan who won the sprint and took the time bonus.
Boasson Hagen came in second, not quite making up for the previous day's relegation, and Viviani was off the pace in eighth.
Stage 4 went to Fernando Gaviria (Quick-Step Floors) who will be one to watch at the upcoming World Championships. Viviani crossed the line second to regain the overall lead.
The day after, Stage 5 saw the overall lead change once again when Lars Boom (LottoNL-Jumbo) stormed to the win in the indvidual time trial and gained enough time to pull on the leader's jersey.
Ewan took his hat trick by crossing the line first on Stage 6, when he started his sprint early and no one could get back on terms. Boom retained the overall lead after finishing with the main bunch.
The penultimate stage gave a win to Dylan Groenewegen (LottoNL-Jumbo), which denied Ewan a fourth stage victory after he finished second.
On the final day, Boom only had to cross the line safely in the same time as his rivals after an expected sprint finish to round-off the overall win.
Boasson Hagen tried to spoil the party by going solo and although he held on for the stage win his time advantage wasn't enough to wrest the jersey from Boom, but he did jump from eighth to second overall.
Tour of Britain General Classification
1. Lars Boom (NED) LottoNL-Jumbo, 30:56:24
2. Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) Dimension Data, at 0:08
3. Stefan Kung (SUI) BMC Racing, at 0:10
4. Victor Campenaerts (BEL) LottoNL-Jumbo, at 0:13
5. Michal Kwiatkowski (POL) Team Sky, at 0:18
6. Jos Van Emden (NED) Lotto-NL Jumbo, at same time
7. Geraint Thomas (GBR) Team Sky, at 0:24
8. Tony Martin (GER) Katusha-Alpecin, at 0:25
9. Owain Doull (GBR) Team Sky, at 0:33
10. Ryan Mullen (IRL) Cannondale-Drapac, at 0:38
Tour of Britain 2017: Key information
Dates: Sunday 3rd September to Sunday 10th September
Grand Départ: Edinburgh, Scotland
Finale: Cardiff, Wales
Countries visited: Scotland, England, Wales
UK television coverage: ITV
Tour of Britain 2017 route
Tour of Britain 2017 route: Stage-by-stage overview
Stage 1, Sunday 3rd September 2017: Edinburgh to Kelso, 188km
The Royal Mile in Edinburgh will host the start of the race on Sunday 3rd September, with a 188km road stage to Kelso, where a finishing circuit will welcome the peloton on the Scottish borders.
Stage 2, Monday 4th September: Kielder Water & Forest Park to Blyth, 211km
Stage 2 heads from Kielder Water to Blyth in Northumberland, and again features a spectator-friendly finishing circuit around the town of Blyth, which last hosted the race two years ago and witnessed Quickstep Floors' Fernando Gaviria take victory.
Stage 3, Tuesday 5th September: Normanby Hall Country Park to Scunthorpe, 172km
Stage 3, held in North Lincolnshire, will be the county's first chance to hold an entire stage within its borders, and will take the race on a 172km stage from Normanby Hall to Scunthorpe.
Stage 4, Wednesday 6th September: Mansfield to Newark-on-Trent, 175km
Similarly to North Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire will host a whole stage for the first time a day later on Stage 4, with a stage from Mansfield to Newark-on-Trent on Wednesday 6th September.
Stage 5, Thursday 7th September: Tendring Individual TT, 16km
Stage 5 is a 16km individual time trial, due to be held in Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, while stage six is a 183km road stage from Newmarket to the coastal town of Aldeburgh in Suffolk.
Stage 6, Friday 8th September: Newmarket to Aldeburgh, 183km
Stage 6 takes the race across Suffolk for 183km for a finish on the coast of Aldeburgh.
Stage 7, Saturday 9th September: Hemel Hempstead to Cheltenham, 186km
The Cotswolds will welcome the race to its hilly roads on the penultimate Stage 7, starting in Hemel Hempstead and finishing in Cheltenham.
Stage 8, Sunday 10th September: Worcester to Cardiff, 180km
The final stage, Stage 8, starts in Worcester on Sunday 10th September, and for the first time in the race's history, will finish in the Welsh capital of Cardiff.
Tour of Britain 2017: Live TV guide
The entire 2017 Tour of Britain will be shown live on ITV4.
Tour of Britain 2017: Startlist
Teams
An Post Chain Reaction (IRL)
Mattew Teggart (IRL)
Sean McKenna (IRL)
Regan Gough (AUS)
Jacob Scott (GBR)
Damien Shaw (IRL)
Mark Stewart (GBR)
Bardiani CSF (ITA)
Vincenzo Albanese (ITA)
Simone Andreetta (ITA)
Enrico Barbin (ITA)
Giulio Ciccone (ITA)
Paolo Simion (ITA)
Alessandro Tonelli (ITA)
Bike Channel Canyon (GBR)
Chris Opie (GBR)
Dexter Gardias (GBR)
James Lowsley-Williams (GBR)
Rob Partridge (GBR)
Harry Tanfield (GBR)
Rory Townsend (GBR)
BMC Racing (USA)
Brent Bookwalter (USA)
Silvan Dillier (SUI)
Floris Gerts (NED)
Ben Hermans (BEL)
Stefan Kung (SUI)
Joey Rosskopf (USA)
Cannondale-Drapac (USA)
Dylan Van Baarle (NED)
Taylor Phinney (USA)
Pierre Rolland (FRA)
Ryan Mullen (IRL)
Hugh Carthy (GBR)
CCC Sprandi Polkowice (POL)
Marcin Bialoblocki (POL)
Alan Banaszek (POL)
Joans Koch (GER)
Lukasz Owsian (POL)
Maciej Paterski (POL)
Jan Tratnik (SOL)
Cylance Pro Cycling (USA)
Eric Marcotte (USA)
Miguel Andres Diaz (COL)
Orlando Garibay (MEX)
Hunter Snipe Grove (USA)
Bryan Lewis (USA)
Kyle Murphy (USA)
Great Britain national team (GBR)
Chris Lawless (GBR)
Adam Hartley (GBR)
Ethan Hayter (GBR)
Jacob Hennessy (GBR)
James Knox (GBR)
Oliver Wood (GBR)
JLT-Condor (GBR)
Brenton Jones (AUS)
Ian Bibby (GBR)
Graham Briggs (GBR)
Russell Downing (GBR)
James Gullen (GBR)
Alistair Slater (GBR)
Lotto Soudal (BEL)
Enzo Wouters (BEL)
Kris Broeckmans (BEL)
Senne Leysen (BEL)
Nikolas Mas (GBR)
James Shaw (GBR)
Marcel Sieberg (GER)
Madison Genesis (GBR)
Alexandre Blain (FRA)
Taylor Gunman (NZL)
Richard Handley (GBR)
Matthew Holmes (GBR)
Jonathan McEvoy (GBR)
Connor Swift (GBR)
Movistar Team (ESP)
Alex Dowsett (GBR)
Daniele Bennati (ITA)
Jonathan Castroviejo (ESP)
Imanol Erviti (ESP)
Gorka Izagirre (ESP)
Rory Sutherland (AUS)
One Pro Cycling (GBR)
James Oram (AUS)
Karol Domagalski (POL)
Kamil Gradek (POL)
Hayden McCormick (AUS)
Steele Van Hoff (AUS)
Peter Williams (GBR)
Orica-Scott (AUS)
Caleb Ewan (AUS)
Mitchell Docker (AUS)
Luke Durbridge (AUS)
Roger Kluge (GER)
Luka Mezgec (SLO)
Robert Power (AUS)
Quick-Step Floors (BEL)
Fernando Gaviria (COL)
Laurens De Plus (BEL)
Philippe Gilbert (BEL)
Daniel Martin (IRL)
Maximiliam Richeze (ARG)
Zdenek Styber (CZR)
Dimension Data (RSA)
Mark Cavendish (GBR)
Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR)
Bernhard Eisel (AUT)
Mark Renshae (AUS)
Scott Thwaites (GBR)
Jay Thomson (RSA)
Katusha-Alpecin (GER)
Tony Martin (GER)
Alexander Kristoff (NOR)
Tiago Machado (POR)
Reto Hollenstein (SUI)
Nils Politt (GER)
Mads Wurtz Schmidt (DEN)
LottoNL-Jumbo (NED)
Dylan Groenewegen (NED)
Lars Boom (NED)
Victor Campenaerts (BEL)
Primoz Roglic (SLO)
Jos van Emden (NED)
Gijs Van Hoecke (BEL)
Team Sky (GBR)
Geraint Thomas (GBR)
Owain Doull (GBR)
Vasil Kiryienka (BLR)
Michal Kwiatkowski (POL)
Elia Viviani (ITA)
Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBR)
Wanty Groupe Gobert (BEL)
Xandro Meurisse (BEL)
Wesley Kreder (NED)
Mark McNally (GBR)
Andrea Pasqualon (ITA)
Dion Smith (NZL)
Thomas Gibbons (USA)
The 2016 Tour of Britain
The route for 13th edition of the modern day Tour of Britain was released today, with a route that touches on both familiar territory and new grounds. A split stage in Bristol, with a time trial followed by a circuit race, a summit finish on Dartmoor's Haytor, and London's traditional closing circuit race on the 11th September are the obvious standout inclusions. But with stages running through Galloway, the Lake District and Peak District as well as Wales, there are any number of potentially decisive stages.
"We are confident that this year's route for the Tour of Britain will provide the opportunity for eight exciting days of racing and a multitude of opportunities for riders and teams to be aggressive and make the race,' says race directior Mick Bennett. 'We believe that with the combination of longer stages of over 200 kilometres, the tough circuit and time trial in Bristol and the summit finish at Haytor we have not just a great preparation for the World Championships but also a fantastic race that will showcase the British countryside.'
Indeed, the Tour of Britain's position on the calendar has made it somewhat of a prepatory event for riders targeting the World Championships in early October. But regardless of this fact, Bennett insists that the race also 'stands alone on its own right as a race riders will want to win.”
The first stage of eight will begin in Glasgow on the 4th September, hoping to benefit from the legacies of both the Commonwealth Games and National Championships which have been held in the city in recent years. A route through the hills of Galloway will follow before the finish in Castle Douglas.
Stage two from Carlisle to Kendal will include the climbs of Whinlatter Pass and The Struggle before an uphill finish on Beast Banks. Stage three sees the race tackle the 10 kilometre Cat and Fiddle climb in the Peak District; stage four a long slog through mid Wales from Denbigh to the Royal Welsh Showground at Builth Wells.
Stage five also starts in Wales in Aberdare before heading across the border through the Forest of Dean and on to the first Bath stage finish. The summit finish at Haytor, where Simon Yates sprung on to the scene with victory back in 2013, returns to the race as the climactic finish of stage 6, before a split stage in Bristol. A 15km individual time trial around the city precedes a five-lap circuit race on the same course, with both routes including the 9% climb of Bridge Valley Road that should ensure that the standings remain open until these final stages.
The quite spectacular arena of central London will again provide the curtains on the 11th of September, with a circuit that will take in Regent Street, Piccadilly, the Strand, Whitehall and Westminster.
Stage One Sunday 4 September Glasgow to Castle Douglas 168km
Stage Two Monday 5 September Carlisle to Kendal 195km
Stage Three Tuesday 6 September Congleton to Tatton Park, Knutsford 182km
Stage Four Wednesday 7 September Denbigh to Builth Wells 217km
Stage Five Thursday 8 September Aberdare to Bath 205km
Stage Six Friday 9 September Sidmouth to Haytor, Dartmoor 150km
Stage Sevena Saturday 10 September Bristol Stage Individual Time Trial 15km
Stage Seven b Saturday 10 September Bristol Stage Circuit Race 76.5km
Stage Eight Sunday 11 September London Stage presented by TfL 100km
All images and maps are courtesy of Sweetspot.
