THE biggest cycling race in the UK could be set to feature Barnsley after the council proposed spending £130,000 to bring the event to the town.
The race itself starts in Glasgow on September 1 and will finish in London seven days later.
Barnsley Council said the exact route has yet to be finalised, but the race would come to South Yorkshire on September 5 and will likely lead to multiple road closures if the bid is accepted.
The council plans to host the stage finale at a cost of £130,000 and said it would improve the area’s ‘reputation’.
The funding would come through the Barnsley Town Board who have allocated £20m to the town over the next decade.
The proposed stage would start in Sheffield and see cyclists travel through Rotherham and Doncaster before finishing in Barnsley.
The race attracts the biggest cycling teams in the world and has become a staple of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) calendar.
Last year’s race was dominated by Dutch team - Visma-Lease a Bike - and won by one of their star men, Wout van Aert.
The first edition of the race was in 1945 and big names such as Bradley Wiggins, Julian Alaphilippe and Mathieu van Der Poel have been crowned champions in the past.
The race has always been separate to the Tour de Yorkshire, which hasn’t run since 2019 after encountering numerous issues following the financial collapse of organisers Welcome To Yorkshire.
Matt O’Neill, executive director for growth and sustainability at the council, said: “We’ve expressed an interest in bringing part of this year’s Tour of Britain cycle race to Barnsley.
“Nothing has been agreed yet but we are asking the new Barnsley Town Board to consider allocating £130,000 of the £20m allocated to Barnsley over the next ten years to fund the costs of this event.
“Our intention in proposing this investment is to attract visitors to Barnsley and showcase our borough to a wide audience, as the event is televised internationally.
“Barnsley’s wonderful landscape and key tourist attractions would be highlighted as part of the route.
“The Barnsley Town Board includes representatives of businesses and other organisations across the borough and they will discuss in detail all the benefits and potential impacts of the race before coming to a decision.”
