Tour of Britain Women route unveiled with Glasgow circuit to host final stage
The route for the Tour of Britain Women has been released, with the four-day race set to visit Scotland for the first time.
This year's edition of the race, the only remaining major women's race on British soil, is to take place entirely within the north-east of England and Scotland.
British Cycling took over both the men's and women's events in early 2024 after the previous promoter, Sweetspot, went into liquidation, and successfully put on a slightly shortened version of both races last year.
The sport's UK governing body will again oversee the races this year, with the women's event - won by world champion Lotte Kopecky in 2024 - taking place from 5-8 June in its usual early summer slot.
The race will begin in Dalby Forest and cross the North York Moors National Park en route to the finish in Redcar, which will host the Tour of Britain Women for the first time.
Stage two takes place entirely within the Tees Valley, starting in Hartlepool and finishing at the top of a second ascent of Saltburn Bank, a common venue for British national championships and a punishing 15% climb.
British rider Pfeiffer Georgi of Picnic-PostNL, who recently returned to racing after a serious crash at the Tour de France Femmes last summer, will be a favourite for glory in Saltburn-by-the-Sea having won the national jersey twice there, in 2023 and 2024.
Stage three visits the Scottish Borders for a route starting and finishing in the town of Kelso, including a cobbled section at the finish.
The race winner will be crowned after ten laps of an 8.4-kilometre (5.3 miles) city centre circuit in Glasgow on the final day, starting and finishing on Glasgow Green. Defending champion Kopecky won her first world road race title in Glasgow in 2023, taking advantage of a city centre circuit to power away from her rivals in the closing stages of the race, and will be among the favourites again this summer if she takes part.
Jonathan Day, Managing Director of British Cycling Events - the arm of the body which oversees the races - said: 'We are delighted to be bringing some of the world's best teams and riders to our communities this June as a part of the UCI Women's WorldTour and to showcase the very best of their character and terrain on what will be four challenging stages.'
This year's route may allow riders to recon potential routes for the start of the Tour de France Femmes in 2027, after a recent announcement that both the men's and women's Tours would kick off in the UK. The planned routes for both Grand Departs will be revealed in the autumn.
Further details for the Tour of Britain Women, including participating teams and more detailed routes, will be unveiled in the next few weeks. Plans for the Tour of Britain Men, scheduled for early September, have not yet been announced.
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North Wales Chronicle
14 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
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Powys County Times
15 hours ago
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Rhyl Journal
17 hours ago
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Oscar Piastri wins Spanish Grand Prix as Lando Norris slips back in title fight
Norris started second and finished in the same position – despite losing out to Red Bull's Max Verstappen off the line – taking the chequered flag 2.4 seconds behind Piastri. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc completed the podium after he fought his way past Verstappen following a late safety car re-start. However, Verstappen accused Leclerc of driving into him as the two made slight contact on the straight and then fell off the road as he attempted to defend from George Russell. Verstappen was advised to give the position to Russell to avoid a penalty, and while he seemed set to let Russell through, he appeared to drive into the Mercedes. YES TEAM! 💪#McLaren | #M7AReborn | #SpanishGP 🇪🇸 — McLaren (@McLarenF1) June 1, 2025 'What the f***'?' Russell said on the radio, with Verstappen later making way. Russell crossed the line in fourth, with Verstappen fifth. However, Verstappen was hit with a 10-second penalty by the stewards, demoting him to 10th. Lewis Hamilton finished a poor seventh after he was passed by Sauber driver Nico Hulkenberg in the closing stages. Piastri's win, which came despite a late safety car, marked his fifth of the nine rounds so far to extend his title advantage over Norris from three points to 10. After failing to land pole position, Norris knew his best chance of beating Piastri would arrive at the long run to the opening corner. However, rather than battle Piastri for top spot, the slow-starting Englishman was left scrambling to keep hold of second with Verstappen drawing alongside in his Red Bull. LAP 62/66 Wow!! 😮 Replays show Leclerc and Verstappen touched on the pit straight at the restart 💥#F1 #SpanishGP — Formula 1 (@F1) June 1, 2025 Norris occupied the centre of the track, but Verstappen, with the advantage of sitting on the racing line, was able to stamp on his brakes later than the British driver to catapult ahead at the first corner. It was the worst possible start for Norris, who had been hoping to build on the momentum of taking just his second triumph of the season in Monaco a week ago. Instead it would be damage limitation, with Verstappen launching an early challenge on Piastri for the lead. It did not last long with Piastri 1.5 seconds clear at the start of lap four. Further back, and Hamilton, who out-qualified Leclerc for the first time since the Chinese Grand Prix in April, was up one place to fourth after he moved round the outside of Russell at the start. But the seven-time world champion was soon struggling for speed, and, for the second time in his short Ferrari career, was asked to move aside for Leclerc. Drama in the closing stages of the race! 😱 Max Verstappen drops to P10 following a 10-second penalty for causing a collision with George Russell #F1 #SpanishGP — Formula 1 (@F1) June 1, 2025 Hamilton duly obliged on lap 10 and by the start of the next lap had already fallen more than a second behind his team-mate. Norris, in his superior McLaren, made light work of Verstappen at the start of lap 13 to take second place, but by now Piastri was already 4.2 seconds up the road. In came Norris on lap 21 for a change of tyres with Piastri in on the following lap. That promoted Verstappen into the lead before the four-time world champion pulled in for his second change of tyres on lap 29. Hamilton's sub-par race then suffered another setback in the pits when he lost time with a sticky front-right tyre. Piastri looked on course to cruise to victory only for Kimi Antonell's engine to expire on lap 55 of 66, and, with the Italian rookie stranded in the gravel at Turn 10, out came the safety car. A six-lap shootout followed but, despite the chaos behind, it was Piastri who held his nerve to keep Norris at bay and land another dent to the Briton's title tilt. Piastri said: 'It was a great weekend overall. The pace was good and we could turn it on when we needed to. 'Good to bounce back from Monaco. It has been a great year and this weekend has been the one I have been after. The team gave me a great car and winning races is a lot of fun.' Norris said: 'Oscar drove a very good race. I didn't have the pace to match him but I gave it my best shot.' Leclerc added: 'Max wanted to bring me to the inside, so I was pushing him to the left. There was a bit of contact but for me no damage so there were no consequences.'
