The Isle of Wight will host the final stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race in 2022 it has been announced, with the Isle of Wight Council set to enter into a formal agreement with organisers today (Saturday).
International cycling stars are expected to take part in the major event which will begin in Aberdeenshire and conclude on the Island in September 2022.
The tour regularly attracts the world’s top cyclists, including Olympic and world champions and Tour de France winners, who all compete over an 8 day period.
The event is expected to provide a significant economic boost to a wide range of sectors on the Island such as accommodation, hospitality and retail. The benefit could be as much as £4million, with a single stage attracting upwards of 150,000 spectators. The Isle of Wight will also benefit from live TV coverage on ITV4 and Eurosport.
Further details are expected to be released in due course, including the exact date of the event. It is understood the race will be held on a weekend and will result in rolling road closures.
Hugh Roberts, Tour of Britain Managing Director, will meet with Council Leader Dave Stewart in Ryde this morning to sign the agreement to bring the Tour of Britain to the Island. Following the signing, Hugh will depart on Leg 1 of ‘The Great Tour’ – a 6,700km awareness and fundraising cycle ride around the coast of Britain which will finish back in Ryde on Saturday 5th September.
It was in September 2019 that Island Echo revealed that the Isle of Wight Council was exploring the opportunities of bringing a major cycling event to the Island. The Tour of Britain was set to be held on the Isle of Wight next year but the coronavirus pandemic has seen the schedule pushed back by 12 months.
Councillor Stewart has said:
“Securing the Tour of Britain is a major coup for the Island and just what is needed to help boost the local economy after the devastating impact of coronavirus.
“This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the stunning landscapes of the Island to an international audience, attracting spectators locally and from afar to enjoy world-class cycling.
“This event will support our economy through hotel stays or spending money in local shops and businesses.
“Just as the Isle of Wight is synonymous with sailing, so too I hope we can become a mecca for all things cycling with Tour of Britain and other exciting cycling events in the pipeline.”
Stephen Park, performance director for the Great Britain Cycling Team has said:
“The Isle of Wight is well known for its sailing heritage and it’s also a brilliant place to ride a bike thanks to the unique and distinctive coastline and scenery, so I know the stage will be a landmark event in 2022’s sporting summer.
“While we will all miss watching this year’s Tour of Britain, it is great to see the organisers break new ground with a first trip to the Island.”
The last major cycling event held locally was the Pearl Izumi Tour series in 2015. Before that it was the cross-Europe Sealink International in 1983 and the Isle of Wight Series 2 years later, but the Tour of Britain will dwarf all 3 events in terms of scale.
Today’s news will undoubtedly be welcomed by Isle of Wight businesses and residents alike following what has been a disastrous 2020. There is more good news on the horizon too…
More idiot cyclists on the roads….. let’s forget about the people who have to work here. Hold ups, congestion. I can’t wait.
Yes Mark, it will be terrible, the Island being the focus of worldwide coverage of a major sporting event, what could possibly be the positives from such an event? Much better to cancel it so not to cause you any inconvenience.
Not just me, lots of others agree.
We had a world-class Motocross Track that was ranked number 2 in the world but no some whinging old twatt that didn’t even live on the island got that shut down every time somebody mentions anything to do with motorsport it gets shut down we have been trying to hold an Isle of Wight TT here for years which would bring thousands of pounds to the island and great for businesses but no everybody winges about it all the time I’m but we get poxy cyclists what a waste
Somebody’s tired .
When will you realise, Mark, that everything is about money. Just scratch the surface of any given event or situation, and the greed for money will rise up. We all need it, admittedly, but some people just can
t get enough, and its often the very rich who want MORE!I agree with you just a waste of time and I waste the money
Great ! Just what we need, more blooming mid life crisis Lycra clad twits on the road.
They’re professional athletes West Wighter. Terribly sorry if it causes you any inconvenience.
Oxymoron – professional athletes.
What is wrong with you, Mark? Why are you such a human-hater? They are your species, remember.
As if we haven’t got enough of those horrible things in the road I will be going on holiday when that event happens
Bye! Hope you enjoy your holiday! One way ticket perhaps?
Excellent news Old Bean, lets hope you have a nice time and let everybody who enjoys live, world class sporting events whilst enhancing the profile and economy of the Island enjoy theirs.
Or you may have fallen off your twig by then ‘Old Bean’ so won’t have to worry about it anyway.
Selfish attitude is pathetic
Good excuse to re surface the new roads that are falling apart already.
Oh joys can’t wait for this event NOT there’s enough cyclists on the roads as it is riding side by side let alone 100s of them
You won’t be driving alongside them Linda as the roads will all be closed so you will be nice and safe.
In fact you won’t be going anywhere Linda as roads, will, no doubt, be closed!
Oup, someone can’t ride a bike
Don’t worry Linda the roads will be closed so you won’t come into contact with them. Ohhhh but you may come into contact with the thousands of cyclists who will be following the same route as the tour from all over the country, lining the roads waiting for the tour to ride through. I’m sure you can cope with this for a couple days whilst the Island and it’s local businesses benefit from the extra income. It’s going to be great!
They don’t close the roads, if they do, why……
Well if you don’t like it don’t watch it
Brilliant, but hopefully they can all get here ok, as there are usually delays & cancellations on the ferries! Not to mention the ridiculous fares they will be charged!!
Hope they put up boat prices
This is great news! The more events like this we can attract to the Island the better. I just hope that the revenue it creates will be put to good use!
I also hope that it will encourage people to drag their old bike out of the shed, give it a dust off and a squirt of oil and get back in the saddle!
Ann I take it you can’t drive or are you one of those sad acts with a bike
Let us hope that the authorities are realistic about reopening the roads after the race has passed. These cyclists travel very fast and are gone before you realise it. I seem to remember that a race on the mainland, was it the Tour de France, resulted in some roads remaining closed for some hours after it had passed.
Fantastic news for the Island – money well spent by Council to get this over here.
no it’s not
Money makes the world go around . . .
Great News, well done the Events team at Visit IOW and IWC: We cant wait! Lets create the BUZZ that the Tour De France did in Yorkshire with our landscape, cheering crowds & iconic images embedded on every TV in the country
What happened to the bylaws that don’t allow racing on island roads
What a fantastic event for the Island to host .
Will be a great boost for our economy. Centre stage on a world televised event .
I would rather see the Military Road full of bicycles than the hot hatches and motorbikes doing 100mph we have now.
What a great event, bring it on.
Yes, that Z bend would be a great place to watch.
The only good thing to come out of this: it might make the council get a move on improving the Island’s roads.
more jobs on pushbike I’m middle of the road
I’ve read sum comments about the cycling coming to the isle of Wight in 2022 i think it is a brilliant and great to see as a cyclists my self I think it is a wonderful thing to bring to the island I no there will be disruption to traffic i no people will moan but it’s no different to the festival with disruption to traffic