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Thu 21 Nov 2024

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Tour of Britain 2024: Route map for every stage

The tour of britain is under way with stages set across the country and all the action available on the small screen.

Some of the world’s best cyclists are currently taking to the roads across the country for the Lloyds Bank Tour of Britain Men 2024.

Starting in Scotland, the six stages of the race organised by B ritish Cycling will snake their way down to end up in the ferry port of Felixstowe in Suffolk over six days from 3 to 8 September.

A total of 18 teams from 12 countries are taking part, including six which participated in this summer’s Tour de France, with 108 riders on the road.

Among the big names on two wheels competing are TeamGB Olympic gold medallist Tom Pidcock and Belgian Olympic double gold medallist Remco Evenepoel, both fresh from Paris.

We take a look at where the road race will be heading over the next few days.

Stage 1: Tuesday 3 September – Scottish Borders

Stage one has already happened with French cyclist Paul Magnier winning the race in the Scottish Borders.

Competitors covered the 113.1- mile course in around four hours, starting and finishing in Kelso and passing through Coldstream, Gordon, Melrose, Denholm, Jedburgh and St Boswells on route.

The route featured two loops, enabling spectators in Kelso and Melrose and on the King of the Mountains climbs at Scott’s View and Dingleton to see the race in action twice.

Stage 2: Wednesday 4 September – Darlington to Redcar

Stage two is a 94-mile race which heads from Darlington, for the first time since 2009, through the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire to Redcar.

The stage crosses the Cleveland Hills and the North York Moors National Park to the coast at Robin Hood’s Bay via a series of short, sharp climbs.

Going via Whitby, this stage features climbs at Lythe Bank and the iconic Saltburn Bank twice.

Riders set out at 11am and are expected to finish by mid-afternoon.

Stage 3: Thursday 5 September – Sheffield to Barnsley

From the start of stage three in Sheffield, the climbing will begin almost immediately as the race heads west, skirting the Peak District National Park with the first climb coming on Long Lane above Loxley.

There will be another peak to conquer at Jawbone Hill before riders can settle down and pass through Chapeltown, Wath upon Dearne, Swinton, and Maltby before a sprint in the market town of Tickhill.

Skirting Doncaster via Conisbrough and Denaby, cyclists will then loop around the north of Barnsley through Royston and Darton before a climb at Hound Hill, a final challenge for riders before the finish.

Stage 4: Friday 6 September – Derby to Newark

Stage four will kick-off from Derby, for the first time in the 20-year history of the modern race, getting under way at 11am from outside of the Derby Arena.

Elvaston, Borrowash, West Hallam and Heanor all feature as the Tour speeds through the roads of Derbyshire for the first time since 2015, crossing into Nottinghamshire at Eastwood and continuing through Hucknall, Ravenshead, Blidworth, Southwell and Tuxford, before crossing the River Trent to race south to the finish alongside Sconce and Devon Park in Newark-on-Trent.

The East Midlands stage route includes an intermediate sprint, in the closing miles of the race at Collingham, before finishing shortly after 2pm.

Stage 5: Saturday 7 September – West Northamptonshire

Stage five on Saturday gets under way at 11am from the University of Northampton’s Waterside Campus.

Leaving the campus, cyclists will head west from Northampton, through Daventry and then onto a loop south of the town and tackle climbs at Newnham Hill and Bullshill.

They will then pass through Abthorpe, Wappenham, Helmdon, Culworth, Byfield and Hellidon before looping around Northampton by way of Watford, West Haddon, Naseby, Kelmarsh and Brixworth for the approach to the finish via Sywell and Ecton at around 2.30pm.

Stage 6: Sunday 8 September – Lowestoft to Felixstowe

The sixth and final stage of the Tour takes place in East Suffolk, for the first time, on Sunday 8 September

The 98.5-mile section gets under way at 10.30am from Lowestoft’s Promenade heading inland via Beccles and Bungay and then south through Halesworth, Framlingham, and Saxmundham, before racing along the Suffolk coast between Thorpeness and Aldeburgh.

The second half of the route takes in Snape, Wickham Market, Kesgrave, and Martlesham before riders cross the finish line on Sea Road in Felixstowe at around 2.45pm.

How can I watch the Tour of Britain?

Spectators can watch the peloton live as it passes through their area from the road side.

But if you can’t make it to any of the stages, then it is also being shown on the small screen.

The race will be free to watch live on organiser British Cycling’s YouTube channel here .

UK viewers will also be able to catch up on the action on ITV4 – stages will be shown live daily from around 11am until 3pm (BST) and there will be an hour-long highlights programme at 8pm daily.

The racing will also be available to stream via ITVX.

Cylcing fans can also see the racing live on Discovery+ from 2pm to 4pm (BST).

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Tour of Britain 2023

8 stages • 03-09-2023 -> 10-09-2023.

Van Aert, Wout

Fouché, james, kooij, olav, q36.5 pro cycling team.

Altrincham (GBR) -> Manchester (GBR)

03-09-2023 • 163.6 kms

Wrexham (GBR) -> Wrexham (GBR)

04-09-2023 • 109.9 kms

Goole (GBR) -> Beverley (GBR)

05-09-2023 • 154.7 kms

Sherwood Forest (GBR) -> Newark-on-Trent (GBR)

06-09-2023 • 166.6 kms

Felixstowe (GBR) -> Felixstowe (GBR)

07-09-2023 • 192.4 kms

Southend-on-Sea (GBR) -> Harlow (GBR)

08-09-2023 • 146.2 kms

Tewkesbury (GBR) -> Gloucester (GBR)

09-09-2023 • 170.9 kms

Margam Country Park (GBR) -> Caerphilly (GBR)

10-09-2023 • 166.8 kms

Movistar Team

Dsm-firmenich, jumbo - visma, ineos grenadiers, bora - hansgrohe, flanders - baloise, great britain, uno-x pro cycling team, kern pharma, global 6 cycling, saint piran, trinity racing, bolton equities black spoke pro cycling, tdt - unibet cycling team, when it began to dispute this race.

The first time was in the year 1945 and this edition is number 19

How many kilometers are covered? And stages?

1271 kms are covered in a total of 8 stage/s

What day begins? How long does it last?

It starts on 03-09-2023 in Altrincham and ends on 10-09-2023 in Caerphilly

How many teams and cyclists participate?

A total of 96 cyclists and 16 teams . Click on this link to see more

What UCI category does this race have?

UCI Pro Series (Various stages) 2.Pro

What company or organizer manages it?

Information, related races.

Tour of Britain 2021

GBR • 05-09-2021 -> 12-09-2021

Tour of Britain 2022

GBR • 04-09-2022 -> 11-09-2022

Image license: Image by tourofbritain.co.uk

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Tour of Britain 2024 Preview

Tour of Britain is a multi-day race on the roads of Great Britain, and has a category UCI 2.1. The race was organized in 1945, since then its status has been constantly changing. In 2004 the race received its current category and since then it has been held regularly.

In 2024, the event will take place between September 1 to 8. Within these eight days, the racers will pass through a number of towns and cities with numerous chances for the fans to spectate and pitch up. The 16th edition of the tour is expected to be much more difficult. The competitors will start in Glasgow and finish in London as before. This year, the riders will have to pass as many as 1308.5 km. Although there are more hill stages, some of the participants predict that the route will not be much easier than last year. Only at the finishing two stages of the race, the riders will enjoy flat runs on the contrast to other hilly stages.

Cycling events in Europe have largely been more popular in France, Spain, and Italy thanks to the presence of races like the Tour de France. They form part of the Grand Tour which requires riders to go through some extremely tough stages before getting the ultimate glory. Professional cycling events in Britain have not attained the same popularity, but several changes to the Tour of Britain are starting to have its effect. After all the Tour of Britain is the most popular professional cycling race in the United Kingdom.

The most recent edition of the Tour of Britain took place in 2015. This was the 12th edition of the event, which underwent major changes in 2004 to make it competitive on the international front. The first edition of the race took place in 1945 – much later than the Tour de France. There was a brief hiatus after the 1999 edition. Following several restructures, the event resumed in 2004. Even though it started out as a five-stage event, recent editions of the cycling Tour of Britain have been held as an eight-stage event. Now, this number will be increased to nine for the Tour of Britain 2024.

Since coming into the UCI Europe Tour, the Tour of Britain route has become much more complex with large predominance for early stages. Twenty teams took part in the 2015 edition that started on September 6. The entire event comprised of only three hilly stages and one medium mountain stage with the rest being flat stages. The event was dominated by three teams – Team Sky, Movistar Team, and Etixx–Quick-Step. Even though they managed to grab individual stages, Cannondale–Garmin managed to win the overall team classification by finishing 5′ 35″ ahead of Team Sky.

Elia Viviani of Italy came out on top when stage victories were taken into account. He managed to grab three stage wins out of eight. Edvald Boasson Hagen of Norway, though, was crowned as the champion as per the general classifications. He ended up walking away with the yellow jersey followed by Wout Poels and Owain Doull. As a British event, the race received a boost with three Brits managing to win the points, general, and sprints classification.

The Tour of Britain 2024 is expected to be much more difficult. The race starts in Glasgow and will end in London as ever. This time around, the stages cover a whopping 1308.5 km. Even though there are more hill stages, several riders are of the opinion that the 2024 route will not be much easier than in the previous edition. Only the final two stages of the event are flat runs with all the rest being hilly stages.

The Tour of Britain dates for the upcoming edition were announced as early as in February. The Tour is also seen as a great opportunity for riders to prepare for the upcoming World Championships in Doha, Qatar, which starts only three weeks after the Tour of Britain ends.

2024 Tour of Britain (2.Pro)

29th edition: september 3 - 8, 2024.

Tour of Britain podium history | 2023 edition | Start list Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 | Stage 5 | Stage 6

Sunday, September 8: 6th & Final Stage, Lowestoft - Felixstowe, 158.4 km

Stage 6 map & profile

Matevz Govekar wins the final stage.

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Weather at the finish city of Felixstowe at 12:10 PM, local time: 19C (66F), partly cloudy, with the wind from the south at 24 km/hr (14 mph). There is a 13% chance of rain, growing to 35% at 4:00 PM.

The race: Here's the report from GC winner Stephen Williams' Team Israel-Premier Tech.

For the first time since 2016, the Tour of Britain has a home winner. Having used his two stage victories earlier in the week in Redcar and Barnsley to establish a solid GC lead, Welshman Stevie Williams completed the job in Sunday’s final stage in the East of England.

Williams, whose previous best result in his home tour was 14th, claimed the GC by 16 seconds ahead of Oscar Onley (DFP). Teammate Joe Blackmore finished fifth overall in his first participation in his home race.

IPT’s impressive week was capped off with a fourth place at the finish in Felixstowe for another British rider, Ethan Vernon, who recorded his fourth top-five result in the race. Vernon also won the sprint classification while, after a brilliant display of teamwork all week, all six IPT riders took to the podium as the best team of the race.

For Williams, this was his third GC victory in 13 months, sitting alongside the Arctic Race of Norway last August and the Tour Down Under in January. The 28-year-old’s career-best year now includes six wins in 2024, one more than the rest of his career combined.

He says: “It doesn’t get much better than winning your home race. My name will always have this race underneath it. I’m really proud to have been part of this team this week – the riders and staff have been amazing. It has been a great week.”

Far from being the ceremonial or straightforward ending, a stage that featured under 1,000 meters of elevation from start to finish was illuminated by a gusty breeze coming in from the nearby North Sea. But Williams never looked like losing his race lead; together with Simon Clarke and Jake Stewart, two of the team’s three unsung heroes this week, he was always on the right side of the splits in the peloton.

“It was quite a complicated day in the end,” Williams adds. ”A lot of teams tried to take it to us, which made it quite difficult. But we controlled the start really well, and then DSM tried to create some chaos in the wind. But I found myself in a small group with Jake and Simon, so that was fine for us. All we had to do was manage things, we could stay in the right wheels, we didn’t have to ride on the front foot. In the end the second group with Ethan came back and we tried to set it up for him in the sprint.”

Vernon’s week ended with another strong placing in the sprint – this was his first road race since May’s Giro d’Italia – and a final day crash involving French rider Paul Magnier meant that he was rewarded for his consistency in the shape of the points jersey. The British rider has finished in the top five in nine of the last 14 stages in his home tour.

“There are some good things to learn from this week,” says Vernon. ”I set myself up for a good sprint today but I didn’t have the legs in the end.

”This wasn’t the way I wanted to win the points jersey with Magnier crashing out, but I’m really happy with Stevie’s result. We all gave 100% to him and that’s why he came home with the win.”

Unsurprisingly given how impressive the IPT performance was this week, the team classification prize also came our way.

DS Sam Bewley was full of praise for the whole team, saying: ”The guys were brilliant again today. On paper it was a sprint stage but with the wind we knew it was a dangerous. Once again the guys were all over it.

”It was a pleasure to watch this group race together and they always kept the race in our favor. We are stoked for Stevie and his teammates deserve a lot of credit for their work as well.”

158.4 kilometers raced at an average speed of 48.908 km/hr

• GC winner: Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech)
• Mountains classification winner: Callum Thornley (Trinity Racing)
• Points classification winner: Ethan Vernon (Israel-Paemier Tech)
• Best young rider: Oscar Onley (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL)
• Teams classification winner: Israel-Premier Tech

946.5 kilometers raced at an average speed of 44.175 km/hr

Stage 6 map & profile:

Stage 6 map

Stage 6 profile

Saturday, September 7: Stage 5, Northampton - Northampton, 146.9 km

Paul Magnier wins again. Photo: SWpix

Stage 5 map & profile

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Weather at the start/finish city of Northampton at 12:45 PM local time: 19C (67F), mostly cloudy, with the wind from the southeast at 8 km/hr (5 mph). There is just a 2% chance of rain.

The race: Here's the report from stage winner Paul Magnier's Team Soudal Quick-Step.

Soudal Quick-Step reached 30 victories this season after Paul Magnier blasted to another win at the Tour of Britain, in what was a nail-biting finish in Northampton, where the breakaway got caught with only 700 meters to go.

Three men animated stage five, putting two minutes into the peloton, a gap which was reduced by just half a minute by the time they entered the last 20 kilometers. It took an incredibly long and determined pull of double Olympic Champion Remco Evenepoel to bring the peloton within distance of the trio, the effort Soudal Quick-Step’s Belgian put in there turning out to be crucial at the end of the stage. As it happened in the previous two days that came down to a mass gallop, Julian Alaphilippe devoted his energies to working for his countryman, expertly putting him in an excellent position for the final 500 meters.

Magnier hit the front in the last 200 meters and completely unbothered by the uphill drag to the line, he swept past all his opponents producing a superb turn of speed that landed him his third stage win at this edition.

“I don’t have the words to tell you what it means to me to take three wins at the Tour of Britain. The team put in a great team performance today. It wasn’t easy to catch the breakaway, but Remco did an incredible effort to cut the gap, and then Julian brought me to the front while I saved my energy. I was able to do another good sprint. We have one more stage here and we hope to be in the mix on Sunday, when there should be another bunch sprint”, said Paul after mathematically winning the points jersey.

Complete results:

146.9 kilometers raced at an average speed of 46.714 km/hr

• GC leader: Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech)
• Mountains classification leader: Callum Thornley (Trinity Racing)
• Points classification leader: Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step)
• Teams classification leader: Israel-Premier Tech

785.5 kilometers raced so far at an average speed of 43.521 km/hr

Stage 5 map & profile:

Stage 5 map

Stage 5 profile

Friday, September 6: Stage 4, Derby - Newark-on-Trent, 138.5 km

Stage 4 map & profile

An enthusiastic Paul Magnier wins stage 4. Photo: SWpix

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Weather at the finish city of Newark-on-Trent at 1:10 P, local time: 24C (76F), sunny, with nthe wind from the northeast at 24 km/hr (15 mph). There is just a 1% chance of rain.

Paul Magnier delivered our team’s 25th stage victory at the Tour of Britain as he became the new points classification leader with just two days to go, after another dominant sprint, this time in Newark-on-Trent, not that far from the famous Sherwood Forest.

On the finishing straight, just after a right-hand corner, Magnier came off the wheel of an excellent Julian Alaphilippe – who once again charged forward with his countryman on his wheel, producing an incredible lead-out – and capitalised on his teammate’s flawless piloting. The 20-year-old stomped from Grenoble his authority on the bunch sprint as he powered like a locomotive to his fourth victory in the pro ranks and his second of the week.

“I’m delighted with this win, which once again wouldn’t have been possible without my incredible team. They controlled the race in the headwind, then put me in an excellent position for the finale, where it was very fast due to the tailwind. I had a lot of confidence and did a good sprint. Finishing it off makes me very happy, especially as this was one of the stages I was targeting before the start of the race.”

“I’m really proud to be part of Soudal Quick-Step, it’s something that motivates me and it feels amazing to contribute to this squad’s incredible palmares. We have two victories so far and it would be nice if we could add to these in the remaining stages. The jersey is a bonus and having it on my shoulders makes me keen on doing my best to take it home”, said Paul, the first French rider this century to score a pair of stages at a single edition of the Tour of Britain.

138.5 kilometers raced at an average speed of 43.304 km/hr

638.6 kilometers raced so far at an average speed of 43.014 km/hr

Stage 4 map & profile:

Stage 4 map

Stage 4 profile

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Thursday, September 5: Stage 3, Sheffield - Barnsley, 166.1 km

Stage 3 map & profile

Stephen Williams wins stage three.

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Weather at the finish city of Barnsley at 12:40 PM, local time: 15C (59F), cloudy, with the wind from the north at 21 km/hr (13 mph). There is a 6% chance of rain.

The race: Here's the report from winner Stephen Williams' Team Israel-Premier Tech.

Two wins in two days for Stevie Williams at the Tour of Britain, and while his victory in Barnsley on Thursday extended his GC lead to 0:16, it was harder fought than his triumph in Redcar a day earlier.

Williams and his teammates spent a day under pressure, with attacks from GC contenders coming as early as five kilometers into the stage. However, the Welshman never looked flustered and, after the race came back together again approaching a technical and undulating approach to the finish, he showed again that he’s the strongest rider in the race.

After getting himself into position on the Old Mill Lane climb with 600 meters remaining, Williams hit the front in sight of the line to easily beat Paul Magnier (SOQ) and Edoardo Zambanini (TBV). Behind, Joe Blackmore placed ninth to move up to fourth overall on his Tour of Britain debut.

”It was really tough, it was a really hard day,” says Williams. “The roads were really demanding, the weather was pretty bad, but in the end it came good. I’ve raced a lot this year with a group that has backed me and given their all for me, and today was no different. They did a stellar job to control the stage today, and it wasn’t easy to do that.”

The action started early: within five kilometers, in fact, as Julian Alaphilippe latched onto a move from local rider Ben Swift. Alaphilippe started the day third overall, 0:16 behind Williams, but handily Jake Stewart followed the Frenchman to give IPT a crucial presence in that move.

After that breakaway was reeled in, Soudal – Quick-Step tried to put Williams in trouble as crosswinds threatened to split the race, but the race leader’s team-mates ensured that no damage was done.

However, an eight-rider move then formed, one that featured a number of GC threats. Home rider Louis Sutton sat 0:31 down on Williams after stage 2, with four other riders within 1:37 of the Welshman. As more inclement hit the race, this group quickly amassed a lead that made Sutton the virtual race leader. However, the efforts of Simon Clarke, Ethan Vernon, and Nick Schultz neutralized their threat. So strong was Schultz that he obliterated the remnants of the peloton, with Alaphilippe and teammate Remco Evenepoel among those dropped.

Williams adds: “The stage seemed to settle down after 50 or 60 kilometers, and then the fireworks started again. It was hectic. But the way my teammates controlled that and brought the breakaway back was incredible. They set it up so that I could have a go again for the win.”

It could have been easy for riders to try long-range moves on the uphill approach to the finish line, but patience was key. Williams picked the right wheels, then timed his sprint to perfection. For the second day running, he had enough of a gap to celebrate the victory.

”We expected it to be an aggressive day with other teams trying to put us under pressure, which is how it went,” said DS Sam Bewley.

”We were pretty clear with the situation we wanted and how we would react and control different scenarios, but a plan is nothing more than that if you don’t have the team to execute.

”It was a pleasure to watch the team today. Our primary goal was to protect the jersey, but of course if the stage was an option then we would commit to that and the way the guys kept the race in our favor and the way Stevie finished it off was inspiring to see. The guys really were incredible today.”

166.1 kilometers raced at an average speed of 43.321 km/hr

• Points classification leader: Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech)

500.1 kilometers raced so far at an average speed of 42.934 km/hr

Stage 3 map & profile:

Stage 3 map

Stage 3 profile

Wednesday, September 4: Stage 2, Darlington - Redcar, 152.1 km

Stage 2 map & profile

Stephen Williams wins stage 2 and takes over the GC lead.

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Weather at the finish city of Redcar at 1:00 PM, local time: 14C (57F), mostly cloudy, with the wind from the northeast at 13 km/hr (8 mph). There is a 6% chance of rain. Rain fell on the peloton early in the stage.

The race: Midway in the stage Callum Ormiston (Global 6 United) abandoned.

Here's the report from stage winner Stephen Williams' Team Israel-Premier Tech:

A first professional victory on home soil, and hopefully a pre-cursor to big things later on in the week. Stevie Williams capitalized on a combative and dominant Israel – Premier Tech performance to win stage 2 of the Tour of Britain on Wednesday, with the bonus seconds on the line moving him into the race lead.

Williams beat Oscar Onley (DFP) and two-time Tour of Britain winner Julian Alaphilippe (SOQ) after the trio broke clear on the uncatgorized climb at Saltburn Bank. The Welshman instigated the move, attacking from an elite breakaway group that included teammate Joe Blackmore and also featured a third IPT rider, Jake Stewart, for a key part of the race.

“This is my third time at this race and I’ve never managed to get my hands in the air here,” said Williams. “It’s really special to win in the UK – we don’t get to race here often so it means a lot.

“From 70 km to go it was technical and twisty, with steep climbs, and the key was to stay in front. We were there in numbers – the way the boys rode was superb. They made sure I was positioned brilliantly going into the climbs.”

The Welshman paid tribute to Blackmore, who placed an impressive fourth.

“Joe was unbelievable in the final, giving us the extra rider to play with,” he adds. “In the end the goal was to get me to the line in a small group. I back my sprint in that situation.”

Williams leads Onley by six seconds, with Alaphilippe third overall, a further 10 seconds down. Thursday’s third stage is the hardest of the race, taking place between Sheffield and Barnsley.

And while the final three stages of the race seem suited to the sprinters, Williams knows the GC battle isn’t over until Sunday.

He adds: “Four more days to go, it doesn’t end until it ends. We’ll play it day by day – a lot of things can happen in a stage race.”

152.1 kilometers raced at an average speed of 41.975 km/hr

• GC leader: Stephen Williams (ISrael-Premier Tech)
• Points classification leader: Julius Johansen (Sabgal-Anicolor)

334.0 kilometers raced so far at an average speed of 42.729 km/hr

Stage 2 map & profile:

Stage 2 map

Stage 2 profile

Tuesday, September 3: Stage 1, Kelso - Kelso, 181.9 km

Stage 1 map & profile

Paul Magnier wins stage 1. Photo: SWpix

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Weather at the start/finish city of Kelso at 1:00 PM, local time: 18C (64F), fair, with the wond from the southwest at 18 km/hr (11 mph). There is a 5% chance of rain.

Soudal Quick-Step made its Tour of Britain return in style, three years after the previous appearance at the race, taking the victory on the opening day thanks to an excellent team effort. One of this season’s revelations, Paul Magnier powered to his third victory for the team, after the ones at the Challenge Mallorca and Tour of Oman, giving no chance to his opponents in Kelso, where the day concluded after a closing kilometer which included a cobbled section just before the finish.

It was an eventful stage, with a three-man breakaway animating things while behind Soudal Quick-Step controlled the gap, and plenty of attacks launched on the last two climbs. Among those to show their intention were double World Champion Julian Alaphilippe and double Olympic Champion Remco Evenepoel, who put the hammer down and stretched out the field.

As soon as things came back together, the Wolfpack returned at the front of the peloton, Gil Gelders doing a tremendous effort to keep our team in a perfect position going into the final part of this 181.9km stage. The same Evenepoel and Alaphilippe came to the fore and pushed a huge tempo that put Magnier in a great position, from where the 20-year-old French neo-pro unleashed a late burst of sprint.

“We had a plan for today. Julian and Remco tried to go on the attack and make the race hard, but after the peloton came back, they worked for me and I did my best to repay their effort with a win. It was very important to be well-positioned in the finale, and having two champions work for me there gave me wings. I launched my sprint just before the cobbles and I am happy I could go all the way and take the victory. It feels incredible and I am proud of taking the leader’s jersey. I knew I was in good shape after my result in Plouay and I hope to continue showing this in the race”, said Paul, the youngest rider in the last 18 years to lead the Tour of Britain.

181.9 kilometers raced at an average speed of 43.353 km/hr

• GC leader: Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step)
• Berst young rider: Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step)

Stage 1 map & profile:

Stage 1 map

Stage 1 profile

Start list with back numbers, September 2, 2024:

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Tour of Britain 2023: Route details, startlist and jerseys guide

The Tour of Britain 2023 begins on Sunday September 3 - here's all you need to know

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After a truncated edition in 2022 due to police having to head off to administer the Queen's funeral, Britain's biggest race - the Tour of Britain - returns for (hopefully) a full run in 2023. 

It's a much more compact edition this year with the race taking place mostly in the middle of the country so if you're anywhere south of Manchester and north of Reading you have precious few excuses for not getting to the roadside to cheer on your favourite rider.

Among the riders set to light up the race are previous winner Wout van Aert and 2022 second place finisher Tom Pidcock , who'll hope to go one better in 2023.

Tour of Britain overview

Tour of britain 2023 route.

Stage 1,   Sunday 3 September

Route: Greater Manchester to Altrincham 

Today's route is near identical to the final stage of the 2019 tour, starting in Altrincham and travelling to Manchester in an anti-clockwise direction taking in the surrounding area’s undulating terrain, including the category two climb of Grains Bar (2.4km at 5.8%) and category one Ramsbottom Rake (1.3km at 8.8%). Those climbs might not sound like much, but together with a number of unclassified rises were enough to significantly reduce the peloton to just a few dozen riders after Ineos Grenadiers applied the pressure. 

The race did eventually culminate in a reduced bunch sprint won by Mathieu van der Poel, but not before we were entertained by a relentless flurry of attacks as teams struggled for control.

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Expect a similar type of rider to triumph today.

Stage 2, Monday 4 September

Route: Wrexham to Wrexham

At just 109.9km, this is a remarkably short stage by any standards, and as a result could witness some atypical racing. Shorter stages tend to produce more intense racing, with riders able to attack earlier on in the knowledge that they won't have to sustain their efforts for as long.

So although the route doesn’t offer many springboards to launch attacks, travelling westwards across the border and into Cheshire rather than eastwards towards the hills of the Clwydian Range to the west, expect riders to try their luck regardless.

Most important of all will be the Eyton Hill, the category three climb summited with just 18.5km left to ride. It’s close enough to the finish for attackers to fully commit themselves, but will the shallow gradients (averaging only around two and three percent) be enough to establish meaningful gaps?

Stage 3, Tuesday 5 September

Route: Goole to Beverley

Setting off from the small market town of Goole, the riders will head north-eastwards to Bridlington, from where they will travel southwards along the coast and then inland again for a finish in Beverley. For the residents of Beverley, this will be a chance to witness a stage finish after the minster town had previously hosted the beginning of Tour de Yorkshire stages in 2016 and 2018, the former won by Harry Tanfield from a successful break, the latter by Dylan Groenewegen in a sprint.

Much like the course of the town’s famous racecourse, the parcours today before arriving at Beverly is mostly flat, but there are a few potential obstacles to overcome if this is to be a sprint finish. The category three hills up Towthorpe Lane and Langtoft must both be climbed during the first of the stage, and after that comes a stretch of about 35km near the coastline which could, if the wind blows strong and in the right direction, cause echelons. But this should in theory be the most nailed-on stage for the sprinters so far.

Stage 4, Wednesday 6 September

Route: Sherwood Forest to Newark-on-Trent

After setting off from Edwinstone in Sherwood Forest, famous for its association with Robin Hood, the riders face the first to the day’s two category three climbs, Kilton Hill, just 15km into the stage. Then, after briefly crossing into Yorkshire and riding through Haworth, where a monument to Tom Simpsons can be found, they will travel southwards again to tackle the next climb, Red Hill Lane.

There’s a whole 85km between the top of Red Hill Lane and the finish, so plenty of time for the race to settle down for a bunch sprint.

Stage 5, Thursday 7 September

Route: Felixstowe to Felixstowe

Perhaps to make up for the lack of any difficult terrain, the organisers have rendered stage five less straightforward than it would otherwise have been by extending it to a total of 192.4km. That makes it by far the longest stage of the race, and could prevent this from being the predictable sprint stage it looks on paper.

Small undulations in the road that would otherwise have been passed over without a second though will sting the legs of the weaker riders, and being so close to the coast a crosswind could encourage a strong team to the front on any exposed roads.

Stage 6, Friday 8 September

Route: Southend-on-Sea to Harlow

Today’s stage is likely to be the last chance for the sprinters to compete for a stage win. And it should be about as nailed-on for them as any stage in the year’s race — there is only one official climb to be overcome, and it’s only a mild category three one tackled with 46km left between its summit and the finish for the peloton to bring back any optimistic attackers who try to use its shallow gradients to get away.

Stage 7, Saturday 9 September

Route: Tewkesbury to Gloucester

The organisers have made the most of the lumpy terrain of the Cotswolds to devise a route that should be selective, and one of the most important days in the GC race.

There is one climb up the category two Winchcombe Hill just 20km after the roll-out in Tewksbury, but the real action will be reserved for the final 30km. First the category two Crawley Hill, which features a nasty ramp at over 20%, then an uncategorized yet deceptively hard 3km rise to the village of Edge, which includes a similarly sharp ramp of 15%.

Stage 8, Sunday 10 September

Route: Margam Country Park to Caerphilly

The climbs to be taken on might not be especially different than those that have preceded them earlier in the week, but there is still a notable upgrade in terms of severity.

That’s clear when the race heads up to the outskirts of Bannau Brycheiniog (formerly Brecon Beacons) national park to take on the first two climbs of the day, Rhigos and Bryn Du, which have both been designated the maximum difficulty racing of category one.

And after a 35km south-easterly trek from the top of the latter comes a double-ascent of the day’s most important climb, and the one on which the entire fate of the Tour of Britain could be decided — Caerphilly Mountain.

In truth it’s more of a hill than a mountain, lasting just 1.3km, but that’s still enough road for its viscous average gradient of 10% to really sting and force a selection.

Tour of Britain startlist

Movistar Team 

DS Max Sciandri 

1 Gonzalo Serrano ESP

2 Will Barta USA

3 Imanol Erviti ESP

4 Max Kanter GER

5 Gregor Mühlberger AUT

6 Óscar Rodríguez ESP

INEOS Grenadiers 

DS Roger Hammond / Ian Stannard 

11 Tom Pidcock GBR

12 Carlos Rodriguez ESP

13 Luke Rowe GBR

14 Connor Swift GBR

15 Josh Tarling* GBR

16 Ben Turner GBR

Bingoal WB 

DS Alessandro Spezialetti 

21 Floris de Tier BEL

22 Johan Meens BEL

23 Davide Persico* ITA

24 Dimitri Peyskens BEL

25 Lennert Teugels BEL

26 Kenneth van Rooy BEL

Great Britain  

DS John Herety / Matt Brammeier 

31 Ethan Vernon GBR

32 Jack Brough* GBR

33 Josh Giddings* GBR

34 Noah Hobbs* GBR

35 Oliver Wood GBR

36 Stephen Williams GBR

BORA hansgrohe 

DS Jens Zemke / Heinrich Haussler 

41 Sam Bennett IRL

42 Patrick Gamper AUT

43 Nils Politt GER

44 Max Schachmann GER

45 Ide Schelling NED

46 Danny Van Poppel NED

Bolton Equities Black Spoke Cycling  

DS Franky Van Haesebroucke / Greg Henderson 

51 Jacob Scott GBR

52 Matt Bostock GBR

53 James Fouche NZL

54 James Oram NZL

55 Mark Stewart GBR

56 Rory Townsend IRL

Global 6 Cycling 

DS James Mitri / Luis Gerrado 

61 Nicolas Sessler BRA

62 Giacomo Ballabio ITA

63 Tomoya Koyama JPN

64 Ivan Moreno ESP

65 Callum Ormiston RSA

66 Tom Wirtgen LUX

Jumbo Visma 

DS Arthur van Dongen / Maarten Wynants 

71 Wout van Aert BEL

72 Edoardo Affini ITA

73 Steven Kruijswijk NED

74 Olav Kooij* NED

75 Jos van Emden NED

76 Nathan van Hooydonck BEL

Equipo Kern Pharma 

DS Pablo Urtasun 

81 Roger Adrià ESP

82 Igor Arrieta* ESP

83 Iñigo Elosegui ESP

84 José Félix Parra ESP

85 Ibon Ruiz ESP

86 Danny van der Tuuk NED

Saint Piran 

DS Steve Lampier / Julian Winn 

91 Alexander Richardson GBR

92 Harry Birchill* GBR

93 Finn Crockett GBR

94 Zeb Kyffin GBR

95 Jack Rootkin-Gray* GBR

96 Bradley Symonds GBR

Team dsm - firmenich 

DS Matt Winston 

101 Tobias Lund Arnesen DEN

102 Patrick Eddy* AUS

103 Enzo Leijnse* NED

104 Niklas Märkl GER

105 Tim Naberman NED

106 Casper van Uden* NED

Q36.5 Pro Cycling 

DS Aart Vierhouten / Rik Reinerink 

111 Mark Donovan GBR

112 Damian Howson AUS

113 Kamil Malecki POL

114 Nicolò Parisini ITA

115 Joey Rosskopf USA

116 Szymon Sajnok POL

TDT - Unibet 

DS Rob Harmeling / Julia Soek 

121 Harry Tanfield GBR

122 Joren Bloem NED

123 Davide Bomboi BEL

124 Jordy Bouts BEL

125 Abram Stockman BEL

126 Hartthijs de Vries NED

Team Flanders - Baloise 

DS Hans De Clerq / Andy Missotten 

131 Kamiel Bonneu BEL

132 Sander De Pestel BEL

133 Milan Fretin* BEL

134 Elias Maris BEL

135 Ward Vanhoof BEL

136 Aaron Verwilst BEL

Trinity Racing 

DS Peter Kennaugh / Jon Mould 

141 Luke Lamperti* USA

142 Robert Donaldson* GBR

143 Luksas Nerukar* GBR

144 Finlay Pickering* GBR

145 Ollie Reese* GBR

146 Max Walker* GBR

Uno-X Pro Cycling 

DS Gino van Oudenhove / Arne Gunnar Ensrud 

151 Alexander Kristoff NOR

152 Frederik Dversnes NOR

153 Tord Gudmestad* NOR

154 Tobias Halland Johannssen NOR

155 Ramus Tiller NOR

156 Martin Urianstad NOR

* Denotes eligibility for the young rider jersey as under-23 

TOUR of Britain PAST WINNERS IN THE LAST 10 YEARS

2012: Nathan Haas (Aus)

2013: Bradley Wiggins (GBr)

2014: Dylan van Baarle (Ned)

2015: Edvald Boasson Hgen (Nor)

2016: Steve cummings (GBr)

2017: Lars Boom (Ned)

2018: Julian Alaphilippe (Fra)

2019: Mathieu van der Poel (Ned)

2020: No race

2021: Wout van Aert (Bel)

2022: Gonzalo Serrano (Esp)

Tour of Britain jersey guide

Blue: GC leader jersey

The best overall rider in the race calculated by the cumulative time they take on each stage.

Green: cottages.com sprints jersey

The first 10 riders each day get points as follows: 25, 18, 12, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Intermediate sprint points are awarded to the first five riders on a 10, 7, 5, 3 ,1 basis.

Black: Pinarello KOM jersey

First-category climbs give the first 10 riders points in descending order from 10. Second-cat climbs work the same for the first six riders, the first getting six points, while third-cat climbs see the first rider get four points.

White: young rider's jersey

Awarded to the best placed GC rider who is also under-23.

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Stephen Puddicombe is a freelance journalist for Cycling Weekly , who regularly contributes to our World Tour racing coverage with race reports, news stories, interviews and features. Outside of cycling, he also enjoys writing about film and TV - but you won't find much of that content embedded into his CW articles. 

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