Warwickshire will welcome the return of the world's top cyclists this September with a testing hilltop finish, as the county hosts stage four of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men on Friday 5 September.
Stage four will take in all five boroughs and districts of Warwickshire (North Warwickshire Borough; Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough; Rugby Borough; Warwick District; and Stratford-on-Avon District), as the county hosts the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men for the first time since 2019, with a stage heading from Atherstone to the ever-popular hilltop finish at Burton Dassett Hills Country Park.
The challenging finale will see riders tackling the 700-metre climb of Burton Dassett Hills, averaging almost 9% gradient, on three occasions in the closing kilometres, the final time for the stage finish, making for a great location to see the riders at their limit on multiple occasions.
Warwickshire children will also have the chance to be involved once again, with Warwickshire County Council launching a competition for under-11s to design the flag that will start the race in Atherstone, and the trophy that will be presented to the stage winner at Burton Dassett.
Cllr George Finch, Interim Leader of Warwickshire County Council, said: "This is a fantastic boost for Warwickshire, and I am particularly delighted to see the breadth of the county that will be encapsulated within the Tour. From north to south, towns to countryside, this event will shine a light on what an incredible place Warwickshire is to live and visit onto an international stage.
"We're thrilled to have been given the opportunity to host such an exciting and esteemed event, and I hope the people of Warwickshire will take to the streets and the hills, as they always have, to give the Tour the support it deserves."
This September will be the third time that Warwickshire has hosted Britain's biggest professional men's cycle race, with the most recent occasion being in September 2019, when Dutch sensation Mathieu van der Poel won atop Burton Dassett Hills Country Park.
Polish rider Kasia Niewiadoma also won a stage of the women's race in the same location that year, with Warwickshire having also hosted the Tour of Britain Women on five occasions in the last decade.
The county also hosted the men's and women's road races in the Commonwealth Games in August 2022, with both events starting and finishing in Warwick.
The detailed route of the Warwickshire stage of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men will be published later in July.
Commenting on the announcement, Jonathan Day, Managing Director of British Cycling Events, said; "Warwickshire has a long and proud history of hosting the Lloyds Tour of Britain with great support from the communities across the county, so we are delighted to be returning, especially with such a challenging finale at Burton Dassett Hills Country Park, that will draw spectators from right across the heart of England."
The Lloyds Tour of Britain Men begins in East Suffolk on Tuesday 2 September, with an opening leg between Woodbridge and Southwold.
Further announcements about the host venues of the remaining stages, as well as the participating teams for the Lloyds Tour of Britain will be made over the coming weeks.
