The Tour of Britain kicks off this week, with the six-day event featuring some of the peloton’s biggest names as they compete in the premier race on British soil.
This year’s Tour holds more significance than most for home fans, as pioneering British cyclist Geraint Thomas is set to bring the curtain down on his lengthy career at its conclusion in Cardiff.
The 39-year-old Welshman will officially call time on his 19 years as a professional at the end of the race, which will honour him with two stages in his home country. The final day will begin outside the Geraint Thomas National Velodrome of Wales in Newport and take in some hilly terrain before finishing in Cardiff city centre.
It’s not just Thomas who will play a starring role in this race, however, with many of cycling’s biggest names in action including Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe, plus young British stars Oscar Onley, Matthew Brennan, and Joe Blackmore.
Here’s everything you need to know.
When is the Tour of Britain?
The Tour of Britain begins on Tuesday 2 September and runs until Sunday 7 September.
How can I watch?
Viewers in the UK will be able to watch for free on ITV4 and ITVX, who are streaming the event live for the 13th consecutive edition, with commentary led by Ned Boulting. The action will be streamed live from around 11am until 3pm on each stage.
TNT Sports and its streaming platform discovery+ will also have live coverage of the race, while the Tour of Britain’s own YouTube channel will provide an additional live stream.
There will also be highlights shown on TV and online, with a highlights programme on ITV4 at 8pm each evening.
Tour of Britain schedule
- Stage one: Tuesday 2 September - Woodbridge > Southwold (161km)
- Stage two: Wednesday 3 September - Stowmarket > Stowmarket (169km)
- Stage three: Thursday 4 September - Milton Keynes > Ampthill (123km)
- Stage four: Friday 5 September - Atherstone > Burton Dassett Hills Country Park (187km)
- Stage five: Saturday 6 September - Pontypool > The Tumble (134km)
- Stage six: Sunday 7 September - Newport > Cardiff (112km)
.jpeg)
Tour of Britain stage guide
The Tour of Britain will encompass 886km of racing across six stages, with a comparatively easier start to the race before ramping up in difficulty as it goes on. The final two stages in South Wales will feature more than 4,000m of climbing across a little under 250km, with the winner likely to be a punchy climber.
Stage one will see the riders zig-zag up the coast from Woodbridge to Southwold in Suffolk, with just the one categorised climb on the menu - the 1.1km, 1% Mill Hill ascent. Stage two is a slightly bumpier ride ending with a pan-flat final 3km in Stowmarket, perfect for the sprinters, while stage three is another peppered with short climbs but with another sprinter-friendly finish.
Stage four ramps up a gear: it features more than 2,000m of elevation gain across six categorised climbs - including the 10% Sun Rising Hill - and plenty more uncategorised bumps in the road, with a final drag up to the line in the Burton Dassett Hills Country Park.
Stage five is likely to be decisive in the general classification, with another 2,300m of climbing on the agenda on five classified climbs. That includes two ascents of the category-one The Tumble, a climb that’s significantly harsher than its rather cutesy name suggests: averaging 8.8% for 5.5km. The stage finishes on its summit.
Stage six is the shortest of the lot at 112km but still packs in 1,700m of climbing, with the category-one Caerphilly Mountain to be surmounted inside the final 20km, which could upend the general classification. It’s only 1.4km but averages 9.7%, after which it’s downhill all the way to the finish line in Cardiff.
.jpeg)
Which teams are racing?
Nine WorldTeams are competing alongside nine lower-level ProTeams, with a squad also made up of Great Britain Cycling Team members.
The teams are:
- Bahrain Victorious
- Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale
- INEOS Grenadiers
- Lidl-Trek
- Soudal Quick-Step
- Groupama FDJ
- Picnic PostNL
- Visma - Lease a Bike
- UAE Team Emirates-XRG
- Equipo Kern Pharma
- Israel –Premier Tech
- Lotto
- Q36.5 Pro Cycling
- Team Flanders–Baloise
- Tudor Pro Cycling
- Unibet Tietema Rockets
- Uno-X Mobility
- Wagner Bazin WB
- Great Britain Cycling Team
.jpeg)
Who are the Tour of Britain contenders?
The biggest name to watch is Remco Evenepoel, double Olympic champion from Paris 2024, a stage winner and third-place finisher at the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana champion in 2022. The Belgian announced a high-profile move earlier this summer to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, one of the peloton’s big-budget teams, for next season, so this will be one of his final outings for Soudal Quick-Step, the team he has been with since turning professional in 2019.
Last year Evenepoel was on domestique duty for the Belgian squad’s young starlet Paul Magnier, who sprinted to victory on three of the six stages. But this year he’s likely to be targeting overall victory for himself, particularly as he seeks to rescue a disrupted and frustrating season.
But Evenepoel will have serious rivals for victory in the British duo of Matthew Brennan and Oscar Onley. Onley enjoyed a breakout race at this summer’s Tour de France, finishing fourth overall and sticking with the world’s best climbers in Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard on both the toughest climbs in the Alps and the more punchy, shorter ascents earlier in the race, climbs which are more reminiscent of those at the Tour of Britain. The in-form Scot was second overall at this race last year and is a major contender to go one better on home roads.
20-year-old Matthew Brennan is among the biggest stars of the season so far, with 12 individual victories to his name and counting, including two at last month’s Deutschland Tour. Not a pure climber but a versatile, punchy sprinter, he has excelled on pretty much all terrain in his debut season at World Tour level and should be in the mix for more wins, particularly on the earlier stages.
Another major name to watch is French fan favourite and 2018 champion at this race Julian Alaphilippe, another key presence in Magnier’s support train last year but now riding for Swiss outfit Tudor Pro Cycling.
He and teammate Matteo Trentin have both had relatively quiet seasons but will be hoping to rectify that this week, with Alaphilippe showing flashes of fine form at the Tour de France - memorably celebrating at the finish line of stage 15 before realising that a breakaway had in fact won the stage ahead of him.
And while Geraint Thomas may not be racing for the overall victory, after transitioning into more of a road captain role for Ineos, he will no doubt be targeting one final stage win and a strong final performance - and where better to win than on home roads on stage six?
Multiple bikes stolen in Visma-Lease a Bike burglary at Vuelta a Espana
Five key stages where the Vuelta a Espana may be won or lost
Jonas Vingegaard eyes redemption – but looming UAE decision can define Vuelta a Espana
Geraint Thomas preparing for final race of career at Tour of Britain
Chris Froome recovering in hospital after ‘successful’ surgery on crash injuries
Multiple bikes stolen in Visma-Lease a Bike burglary at Vuelta a Espana
