The continued backing of UK-based energy supply company OVO Energy will see the Women's Tour match the prize funds of the men's Tour of Britain for a second consecutive season.
The event sponsor announced today that it will match prize funds across the two marquee British stage races while also upping the prize pot to €97,880 for 2019 from €89,999 last year.
This will continue OVO Energy's ambition to provide parity between the men's and women's races and hopefully encourage more women to ride bikes, as OVO's CEO of retail Adrian Letts said in a statement.
'This is our third year sponsoring the OVO Energy Women's Tour, helping to enable a free-to-view sporting event to be brought to fans across the UK. Last year we announced the top cyclists at the Women's Tour would compete for equal prize money, taking a meaningful step towards gender parity in cycling,' said Letts.
'We're proud to have committed to matching the prize money again, helping to provide an equal platform and inspiring more women to ride bikes.'
Mike Bennett, race director of the Women's Tour, also commented on the announcement and a desire to keep the race at the forefront of professional women's racing.
'This continued commitment by OVO Energy aligns with our desire to keep the Women’s Tour at the forefront of sport’s push towards equality. In 2018 we saw how aggressive and entertaining the racing was – no doubt helped by the prize fund on offer – and I have little doubt that the action it will be the same again in June.'
This prize fund increase coincides with the Women's Tour expansion to a six-day stage race in what will be its sixth running.
As with the 2018 edition, Suffolk will host the Grand Depart of the Women's Tour with a 157.6km opening stage on Monday 10th June, with the final stage set for Saturday 15th June.
Last year's title was taken by American Coryn Rivera who beat Marianne Vos and Britain's Dani Rowe to the overall victory.
Full details of the entire route and riders expected to participate will be released in the coming weeks.