The Tour of Britain will not come to Wolverhampton next year, the Express & Star can today reveal.
Britain’s most prestigious cycling race has enjoyed a spectacular start and finish in the city over the last two years.
But due to a nationwide waterways festival being held in the city next summer, the council has decided it does not have the capacity to host two high-profile events.
It is thought organisers had wanted to start one of the stages of the race in Wolverhampton, as it did in 2005, and finish in Stoke.
Instead, the three-day Inland Waterways Association National Festival and Boat Show is to be held at Autherley Junction in Pendeford on the August Bank Holiday weekend. Up to 350 boats and 25,000 people are expected to flock to Wolverhampton as the festival makes its first stop in the Midlands for more than 10 years.
Today the council’s deputy leader Peter Bilson, who helped the city forge links with the Tour of Britain, pledged Wolverhampton had not seen the last of the exciting event. He said council officers were working with tour organisers to arrange another thrilling finish in the city the following year.
This year’s race will be run from September 7 to 14. One of the stages will finish in Stoke but it is not clear where it will start.
The Tour of Britain first came to Wolverhampton in 2005, where dozens of champion riders started the fourth stage of the race from Queen Square. This year the city staged the finish of stage three of the race, which saw 96 riders cross the finishing line. Thousands of people from across the region gathered in the city to watch the spectacle.
13 Comments
Wolverhampton Council - no ambition! Who made this decision?
Anything that raises Wolverhampton’s profile in a positive way must be good for the city which we all know is a standing joke in all other parts of the country.
I suppose that I should not be surprised as Wolverhampton Council cannot maintain the streetlights, presides over a poor standard of education (of which it seems quite proud), poor roads, a dirty city, the list of failure is endless.
world’s most prestigious cycling race?
surely that would be the Tour de France
KGB - you want to open your eyes and go and visit some other parts of the world, eg in mainland Europe, before you make such comments! Standards in Wolverhampton are pretty good! You are also out of date in saying that the city is a ’standing joke’. It never appears in the jokes and the bottom of league tables. Certain other places do.
Rich! - You beat me to it! And how about similar races in Spain and Italy!!!!!!!!!!
If the council don’t have the physical resource to organise two major events so close together, then fair enough. Using the word ’snubbed’ is at least, flippant. Well you’ve got to get the moaners, depressives and ‘hang-en-and-flog-em’ something to chew on.
The Tour of Britain was OK - see some cyclists blaze by in 30 seconds and it’s over. Tour of Britain was an ego trip as it got the city on TV but didn’t attract that many people to the city.
The National Waterways Festival on the other hand will be a great couple of days for local people. It’s a different type of event - clearly some feel isn’t as glamorous. However, it will show the city in a good light and bring money in.
Would rather see the money spent on paving our towpaths properly….preferably all the way to stafford and chester.
To Wolves Council - howsabout trying to become less wasteful with our money and hosting both events? Or is that just too much like hard work?
German Wolf - I have been lucky enough to travel widely and have visited many places worse than Wolverhampton but there are few that make so little of so much.
Wolverhampton is consistently towards the bottom of any published table of living standards (alongside Birmingham, Sandwell, Walsall and Dudley).
When talking to people from other areas the simple mention of Wolverhampton provokes ‘funny’ comments. The place has a bad reputation and is a joke in many peoples eyes.
Of course Wolverhampton is capable of hosting both events at the same time. I would guess that the organizers of the cycle race changed their minds about holding it here and this story is a cover-up by the Council to save face
I SAY DONT DO ANY THING TO ENCOURGE BIKES THERE A PEST ON THE ROAD THATS IF THEY GET OF THE PAVEMENTS ..
JINX
KGB said: Dec 13th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
I suppose that I should not be surprised as Wolverhampton Council cannot maintain the streetlights, presides over a poor standard of education (of which it seems quite proud), poor roads, a dirty city, the list of failure is endless.
I don’t recognise this description at all. I cannot find fault with the street lights excepting that there are too many of them. The standard of education is not poor and the roads are very good. I have recently reported three potholes. One was repaired within 24 hours and the others referred to the waterboard for their action. I agree with the dirt, more or less but if the inhabitants didn’t through litter about, and Macdonalds took responsibility for their waste, it wouldn’t be a problem.
Remember Percy Stallard of Broad Street who first brought road racing to Britain.
the tour of britian is bigger than a boat festival. allso i thought it would finish in the city centre and not some way out like pendeford.
but i truly think that the council has lost money out of this and thats why they carnt afford the wages any more becouse they lost the tour
Good! The Tour of Britain has a Scottish, Welsh, Irish and BRITISH team. The British team is all the English riders and it’s sponsored by Sport England.