Men and women will face exactly the same stage when the second Tour of Yorkshire gets under way next year.
Stage Two, which starts in Otley, home of the current women’s road world champion Lizzie Armitstead and heads south to Doncaster, will pose the same challenge for both sexes on a route not raced on before in the Tour de France or Tour de Yorkshire.
The route unveiled on Wednesday is intended to take the 18 teams of eight riders to all four corners of Yorkshire, linking up the county’s sporting, historic, industrial and literary heritage.
Sir Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “For next year’s race we’ve selected routes which showcase Yorkshire’s stunning scenery and will also deliver an excellent sporting event.
“Our first race was phenomenally successful, bringing 1.5m spectators to the roadside, generating over £50m for the regional economy and being broadcast around the world.
“The stages we’ve revealed today are eagerly anticipated by fans, riders and teams and we have all the ingredients for another spectacular race which will bring the crowds back out.”
Stage One begins in Beverley and on to Knaresborough which was the scene of some of the biggest crowds for the Tour de France in 2014. Taking in some of the Grand Depart 2014 route, a series of climbs takes the riders past Brimham Rocks before a finish in Settle.
After Stage Two to Doncaster, the third stage starts in Middlesbrough, then into Herriot country before tackling Sutton Bank, the first of six King of the Mountain points. Riders then head over the North York Moors and down towards Scarborough for the eventual finish.
Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour de France, said: “Today marks an important milestone for the race. Feedback from teams and riders last year was excellent and this year we have three stages which together create a race right to the end; the final King of the Mountain points are barely six kilometres from the final finish line.”
Stage profiles
Stage One Friday 29 April 2016: Beverley to Settle
Total stage length 184km
The first stage will set off from Saturday Market in Beverley. The riders will parade around the town – which also played host to the race in 2015, then through North Bar before heading to the official start at Beverley Racecourse, Holme on the Wolds, Market Weighton (where the race passed through in May 2015) and on westwards to a sprint point at Bubwith.
From there, the peloton will race through North Duffield and west to Cawood and on to Tadcaster, famous for its breweries. After that, riders will visit Boston Spa, Wetherby, North Deighton and Knaresborough, then Ripley and on to Pateley Bridge where the first King of the Mountain point will be won at Greenhow Hill. After that, it is on to Grassington, then Threshfield and a return to some of the Tour de France roads, through Cracoe then Gargrave and then the riders cross the finish line in Settle for the first time before a sprint at Giggleswick. They will complete a 12km loop back to the A65 and round to Settle town centre for an expected bunch finish in the town.
Stage Two Saturday 30 April 2016: Otley to Doncaster
Total stage length 135.5km
The women’s race will be held on exactly the same route as the men’s race, the women starting in the morning and the men in the early afternoon.
The official start is at Pool-in-Wharfedale, before the riders face an early King/Queen of the Mountain challenge at Harewood Bank, then head south-east towards another King/Queen of the Mountain at East Rigton, then to Thorner and a sprint at Scholes, then to Barwick in Elmet crossing the A1 at Aberford. Riders then go past Lotherton Hall, into Sherburn in Elmet, down to South Milford and Monk Fryston before swinging south to Birkin and Beal. The route then heads through Kellingley and on to Knottingley, Pontefract and Wentbridge, before North and South Elmsall, and on to Hooton Pagnell. There is a sprint point at Warmsworth before a lap of 11th century Conisbrough Castle. The peloton will then head towards Tickhill and Bawtry before racing along the perimeter of Doncaster Sheffield Airport, past Doncaster Racecourse and on to a sprint finish on South Parade.
Stage Three Sunday 1 May 2016: Middlesbrough to Scarborough
Total stage length 196km
One for the climbers. With an elevation of 2,593 metres and six King of the Mountain classifications, the route begins in Middlesbrough, birthplace of Captain James Cook, and takes the riders on a challenging and technical route through much of the North York Moors national park. From the start line at Middlesbrough’s MIMA Gallery, the riders travel south over the official start on the outskirts of Nunthorpe on the A172, through Great Ayton and on to Stokesley, Hutton Rudby, Winton and down to Northallerton. From there, the riders head to Thirsk’s market square where there will be a sprint point, before the notorious Sutton Bank and a King of the Mountain point. They go onwards to Helmsley, then to Kirkbymoorside and heading north to Hutton le Hole and a King of the Mountain at Blakey Ridge.
The peloton will recognise Castleton and many of the villages towards Whitby as the route is similar to that for the 2015 race. There will be a King of the Mountain at Grosmont, where in 2015 riders were welcomed by a steam salute by the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, and riders will pass through Sleights and Ruswarp before dipping down to Whitby. There is a sprint point at Whitby Abbey, before the race makes a visit to Hawkser. Next up is a battle over a King of the Mountain at Robin Hood’s Bay, before another King of the Mountain at Harwood Dale. From there it goes to East Ayton and Irton, before a final King of the Mountain at Oliver’s Mount and a sprint finish in Scarborough’s North Bay.
