Sir Bradley Wiggins and Marcel Kittel have been confirmed as two of the stars who will take part in the first ever Tour de Yorkshire.
The 2012 Tour de France winner will lead his own Team WIGGINS developmental squad while the German sprinter will return to Yorkshire a year after wearing the first yellow jersey in Harrogate at the Tour de France 2014.
At Welcome to Yorkshire’s annual conference in Scarborough yesterday (Thurs) the race organisers, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) and Welcome to Yorkshire, announced the teams taking part.
Seven of the teams who raced in the Tour de France are returning to Yorkshire’s roads and will be joined by an exciting mix of European and home-grown talent.
British cycling’s Team Sky will join Team Giant-Alpecin, BMC Racing Team, Team Lotto NL-Jumbo and IAM Cycling.
Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour de France, said: “We will be glad to return to Yorkshire after the huge success of the Tour de France Grand Départ, the grandest ever.
“The first ever Tour de Yorkshire will be another occasion to showcase the outstanding landscapes of the county, especially of the coast which we didn’t visit last year with Le Tour.”
Sir Bradley missed the Tour de France having been dropped by Team Sky. He leaves the team next month.
The Tour de Yorkshire is held on Friday, May 1 to Sunday, May 3.
Stage 3 on Sunday goes through Denby Dale, Holmfirth, Meltham, Marsden and Scapegoat Hill.
