What’s it all about
What is The Tour of Britain?
The Tour of Britain is an international road cycle race, which is broken up into eight stages, taking place over eight days.
After eight days of racing the cyclists will have covered around 760 miles (1,223kms). Phew – that’s a lot of pedal power!
How many cyclists take part in The Tour of Britain?
The number of cyclists taking part in the race can change each year, but it’s usually around 16 teams, made up of six riders each. So, that’s around 96 riders.
The race is all about team work. Each team usually has a:
Leader – someone who will try and finish each stage of the race first
Mountain climber – someone who is good at cycling up hills
Sprinter – someone that can cycle very fast
Domestiques – the domestiques are cyclists who help the team leader get to the finish first. Their job is to shelter the leader from the wind, fetch food and drink and even give up their bikes if the leader has a mechanical problem!
What are ‘Sprints’ and ‘King of the Mountains’?
During each stage of The Tour of Britain there are usually three Sprints and three King of the Mountains take place.
A Sprint is a section of the race which riders have to try and do in a really quick time0AHow many cyclists take part in The Tour of Britain?
The number of cyclists taking part in the race can change each year, but it’s usually around 16 teams, made up of six riders each. So, that’s around 96 riders.
The race is all about team work. Each team usually has a:
Leader – someone who will try and finish each stage of the race first
Mountain climber – someone who is good at cycling up hills
Sprinter – someone that can cycle very fast
Domestiques – the domestiques are cyclists who help the team leader get to the finish first. Their job is to shelter the leader from the wind, fetch food and drink and even give up their bikes if the leader has a mechanical problem!
What are ‘Sprints’ and ‘King of the Mountains’?
During each stage of The Tour of Britain there are usually three Sprints and three King of the Mountains take place.
A Sprint is a section of the race which riders have to try and do in a really quick time. Sprint time bonus points are awarded to the first riders to reach certain locations along the route.
A King of the Mountains (KOM) is a hill climb. Each KOM is rated from 1 to 3 depending of the difficulty (Category 1 is the most difficult). The steeper and longer the hill, the tougher the climb. KOM bonus points are awarded to the leading riders who reach the top of the hill climb first.
How do cyclists win the race?
The race isn’t just about who gets to the finish line first – it’s made up of several competitions all going on at once! This may seem complicated at first, but it makes the race even more exciting to watch. The current leader in each competition wears a special jersey.
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IG Markets Gold Jersey — Race Leader The overall winner of The Tour of Britain will be the rider who completes the race in the quickest time. The Gold Jersey is worn during the race by the current leader. |
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Chain Reaction Cycles Points Jersey — Points Leader The winner of the Points Jersey will be the rider who gains the most points throughout the course of the race. The Points Jersey is worn during the race by the current points leader. |
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Skoda King of the Mountain Jersey — King of the Mountains Leader The Polka-Dot Jersey is worn by the rider who has been the most consistent in reaching the summits of the King of the Mountains climbs along the route. There are three categories of climbs, with the longest and steepest climbs worth most points. |
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Yodel Sprints Jersey — Sprints Leader
The first three riders across the line at each of the sprints receive points towards the Red, White & Blue Jersey. The rider who crosses the line first gets 3 points, the second gets 2 points, and the third gets 1 point. These “Hot Spot” sprints are important to the outcome of the race, as the points gained are translated into seconds which are taken off each rider’s overall time. |
What about other professional cycle races?
The Tour of Britain makes up part of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Europe Tour. The Europe Tour has a lot of cycling events which professional cyclists from around the world can take part in.
The UCI also has a Continental Circuit, which includes around 450 road races! The purpose of all of these races is to inspire people from all walks of life across the world to get cycling.