Post race interview with Ian Standard of Team Sky after he soloed to a memorable stage victory in the beautiful surrounds of Tatton Park on the outskirts of Knutsford, as huge crowds lined the route of the first every Cheshire East stage of the Tour of Britain.
Post race interview with Ian Standard of Team Sky after he soloed to a memorable stage victory in the beautiful surrounds of Tatton Park on the outskirts of Knutsford, as huge crowds lined the route of the first every Cheshire East stage of the Tour of Britain.
The Etixx Quick-Step rider was among the survivors of a 15-rider breakaway on the 188-kilometre stage from Carlisle and was joined by Dimension Data man Cummings, who had broken away on the climb of The Struggle, and was an aggressive presence throughout the run in to Kendal.
I knew once the break it had gone it would be very difficult to catch us or if they did catch us they would have wasted a lot of energy as well.
Once I saw Cummings coming back I knew I had to stay in his wheel because once he gets a little gap he’s gone. We had good co-operation between us but I’m really glad I could take the Stage win.
After starting in clear conditions in front of large crowds in Carlisle, the first half of the stage was run off in sunny conditions, with the strong 15-rider lead group containing overnight leader and Stage One winner Andre Greipel, Team Sky’s Nicolas Roche and Vermote.
Once through Keswick and over the second SKODA King of the Mountains climb of Chestnut Hill the rain and mist set in with the, much anticipated, climb of The Struggle out of Ambleside proving decisive.
Post race interview with Stage 2 winner and Yellow Jersey holder Julien Vermote of Etixx Quick-Step.
Dimension Data’s Mark Cavendish led the peloton onto The Struggle, just over a minute and a half down on the fracturing front group as Vermote and Roche went clear from the break with Xandro Meurisse, Bert-Jan Lindemann and Trek Segafredo stagiare Jacopo Mosca.
First to bridge across was BMC’s former World Hour Record holder Rohan Dennis with an impressive ride, making six in front on the descent, with a chase group of ten led by Cummings and Ben Swift behind. Under pressure from Cummings and Gallopin that group dissolved, with Cummings going on to make it across.
The Brit put in several attacks on the rolling Crook road from Windermere towards Kendal, with Vermote the only rider able to follow him. The pair built a 40-second gap as they approached 5-kilometres to go, the majority of that work done by Cummings as with Dan Martin behind Vermote was content to bide his time until the finale on Beast Banks.
With Cummings leading up the climb, Vermote surged past on the outside as the gradient eased going into the final 200-metres, crossing the line with a 2-second advantage over Cummings, good enough for a six second lead overnight going into Stage Three in Cheshire.
The win was Vermote’s first since his victory in Brighton during the 2014 Tour of Britain, when he won alone at the end of another arduous stage.
I asked the team to come here, I knew it wasn’t originally in the programme but I knew there would be some opportunities,” said Vermote reflecting on his win. “It’s an open race with only 6 riders per team so that makes it different to all the other races. It’s a really tough race though, small roads and up and down all day but I’m just really happy I took my chance.
Behind Vermote on the General Classification is Cummings at six seconds, with Dan Martin third at 1-minute 04-seconds, before Meurisse, Swift and Tony Gallopin all a further four seconds in arrears, while only the top-12 riders remain within three minutes of the Yellow Jersey presented by Eisberg.
Stage One winner Greipel moved into the Yodel Sprints jersey after taking a clean sweep of the intermediate Yodel Sprints in Hesket Newmarket, Cockermouth and Grasmere, and Wanty Group Gobert’s Meurisse took the lead in the SKODA King of the Mountains jersey.
Stage Three sees Cheshire East host their first ever stage of the Tour of Britain, with Congleton hosting the start and Tatton Park outside Knutsford the stage finish, which the race will pass through at around 1pm, before returning for an expected finish at around 3.15pm.
The route for the 2016 edition of the Tour of Britain, British Cycling’s premier road cycling event, has been launched in Bristol this evening [Thursday 25 February] featuring an overall start in Glasgow and finale in the centre of London plus three stages in the South West of England, including a return to the summit finish of Haytor on Dartmoor, and a challenging individual time trial and circuit race split stage in the heart of Bristol on the penultimate day.
Having last welcomed the Tour of Britain in 2008, Glasgow will host the Grand Depart of the opening stage on Sunday 4 September, building on the success of hosting the Commonwealth Games and British National Road Race Championships in recent years.
The opening stage will finish in Dumfries and Galloway’s Castle Douglas, last visited by the Tour of Britain in 2006, before the second stage takes place in Cumbria and the Lake District between Carlisle and Kendal, including the iconic climbs of Whinlatter Pass and The Struggle, before the uphill finish on Beast Banks.
The third stage of the Tour of Britain will feature a first visit to Cheshire East with a stage from Congleton to Tatton Park outside Knutsford, which will feature a spectator friendly loop giving fans at the finish the chance to see the race twice. The stage will also tackle the iconic 10-kilometre climb of the Cat and Fiddle in Cheshire’s Peak District.
Denbighshire will host its first stage start as Stage Four begins in Denbigh, heading south through Mid-Wales before Powys hosts a first stage finish, on the Royal Welsh Showground at Builth Wells.
Stage Five begins in Wales in Rhondda Cynon Taf at Aberdare, heading across South Wales and through the Forest of Dean into Gloucestershire before the finish in Bath, a first for the city.
This will begin three days of racing in the South West after a one-year absence for the area from the Tour of Britain route that will see the world’s top teams head to Devon for a repeat of the 2013 summit finish at Haytor in the Dartmoor National Park.
Bristol will host the penultimate stage of the race, which will be a split stage with riders contesting an 15-kilometre individual time trial in the morning before a 5-lap circuit race in the afternoon. Both stages will take place entirely on a proposed 15.3-kilometre circuit finishing atop the Bristol Downs. The 600-metre SKODA King of the Mountains climb of Bridge Valley Road, which averages 9%, will feature in the final kilometres of a both stages.
London will again host the final stage, presented by Transport for London, on Sunday 11 September, which will use the same circuit as in 2015, focused on Regent Street, the Heart of London and the Northbank, with a repeat of the finish on Regent Street St James just below Piccadilly Circus.
Commenting on the route announcement, Tour of Britain Race Director Mick Bennett said;
“We are confident that this year’s route for the Tour of Britain will provide the opportunity for eight exciting days of racing and a multitude of opportunities for riders and teams to be aggressive and make the race. We believe that with the combination of longer stages of over 200-kilometres, the tough circuit and time trial in Bristol and the summit finish at Haytor we have not just a great preparation for the World Championships but also a fantastic race that will showcase the British countryside and stands alone in its own right as a race riders will want to win.”
“The route includes major cities such as Glasgow, Bristol, Bath and London, and visits each of Scotland, England and Wales, while at the same time touching many smaller communities and areas where we know the passion and support for cycling is so great.”
Jonny Clay, British Cycling director of cycle sport and membership, said:
“We are proud to announce the 2016 route for Britain’s national tour. Every year the Tour of Britain offers a chance for the public to see some of the world’s best road riders racing through their local area. Last year’s race had a bit of everything; fast flat sections, rolling roads and a great hill top finish which led to exciting racing for the competitors and fans alike. .This year’s route has all the same ingredients, so promises to be a great event.”
Chain Reaction Cycles continue their partnership with the race and sponsorship of the Chain Reaction Cycles Points Classification, won in 2015 by Team WIGGIN’s Owain Doull, while UK parcel carrier Yodel will continue to sponsor the daily intermediate YodelDirect Sprints classification, which Peter Williams of ONE Pro Cycling won last September.
ŠKODA remain official car suppliers and sponsors of the King of the Mountains jersey, also won by Williams in 2015.
For the fifth successive year fans can look forward to enjoying daily live coverage of all eight stages on ITV4, with the channel broadcasting a three-hour live programme from each stage, plus one-hour of highlights every evening during the race.
Commenting on the 2016 event, Hugh Roberts, Chief Executive of Tour of Britain organisers SweetSpot said; “This year’s Tour of Britain features a fantastic combination of major cities like Glasgow, Bristol and London, smaller communities across Scotland, England and Wales and the stunning scenery and testing climbs of the Lake District and Dartmoor. With hundreds of thousands of fans at the roadside and millions more watching via live television in the UK and around the world, the 2016 Tour of Britain is a fantastic showcase for the brands involved in the event.
“We thank our jersey partners Chain Reaction Cycles, SKODA and Yodel and all our other Official Partners and Suppliers for their continued support.”
The Tour of Britain is British Cycling’s premier road cycling event giving cycling fans the opportunity to see the world’s best teams and riders competing on their door step.
About the Tour of Britain
Re-launched in 2004 after a five year absence from the calendar, the Tour of Britain is British Cycling’s premier road cycling event giving cycling fans the opportunity to see the world’s best teams and riders competing on their doorstep. The Tour of Britain is the UK’s highest ranked professional stage race and the country’s largest free-to-watch sporting event, organised annually by SweetSpot Group.
Ranked at the 2.HC level by the UCI, the Tour of Britain attracts the world’s top cyclists, including Olympic and World Champions and Tour de France stage winners, to compete on British roads each September, with three-hours of live coverage a day on ITV4.
The 2016 Tour of Britain takes place from Sunday 4 to Sunday 11 September.
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