London 2012 chief Sebastian Coe and London mayor Ken Livingstone have added their support for the Tour of Britain, which ends in a Westminster crit on September 5th. It's also been revealed that the Tour winners will share a £60k prize fund. The highest profile competitor could be T-Mobile's Andreas Klöden, second in this year's Tour de France.

Tour of Britain finale is good for London’s Olympic bid, say Coe and Ken

BikeBiz 06/08/2004 News

Klöden could be joined at the Tour of Britain by team-mates Serguei Ivanov and Rolf Aldag, who also rode in this year’s Tour France (finishing 57th and 69th respectively).

The UK is the second biggest market in Europe for T-Mobile, the German telecommunications giant, and the T-Mobile team will likely be the strongest in the Tour of Britain.

It’s also possible that the race will be graced by Olympic medal winners. The Athens Olympics are kicked off with a road race.

And it’s London’s bid for the Olympics in 2012 that has generated positive ToB quotes from Sebastian Coe and Ken Livingstone.

The Mayor of London said:

"After a five-year absence it is great news to see the Tour of Britain back on the sporting calendar, especially as London is hosting the final leg.

"With ever-increasing numbers of cyclists in the capital I am sure Londoners will give the Tour the same enthusiastic welcome they have given to recent events such as the London Marathon – the world’s largest – and the Olympic Torch Relay, which gained such a tremendous response on the streets."

Ninety-six riders will contest four stages over 500 miles around the country before they reach the final London stage. It is the first time the race has been in the UK since 1999, when it attracted an estimated 3 million spectactors along its route.

Competitors will ride 45 laps of a circuit made up of Whitehall, Northumberland Avenue, The Embankment, Bridge Street and finishing back at Whitehall. The riders will pass iconic London landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament, 10 Downing Street and Trafalgar Square.

Sebastian Coe, chair of London 2012 said:

"The Tour of Britain will be a fantastic event and London is the perfect location for the final leg of the race. Over 80 000 people were in the Mall for the recent Olympic Torch Relay concert and an estimated 500 000 people came to watch the Formula 1 parade in Regent Street, showing what a passion exists for watching sport in London.

"I want to tap into that enthusiasm and ensure that the success of Tour of Britain helps strengthen the London Olympic bid, which will bring massive benefits to the capital and to the whole country."

Cycling will get a major boost if London stages the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012 – including a new Olympic Velodrome, a BMX track and an on-and-off road cycle circuit.

http://www.tourofbritain.co.uk

The following teams will be taking part in the Tour of Britain:

Chocolade Jacques Wincor-Nixdorf BELGIUM

http://www.14sports.be

Crédit Agricole FRANCE

http://www.credit-agricole.fr/…/cyclisme

Team CSC DENMARK

http://www.teamcsc.com

Lotto-Domo BELGIUM

http://www.lotto-domo.com

MrBookmaker.com-Palmans BELGIUM

http://www.mrbookmaker-palmans-collstrop.com/