Scotland to host opening stage of the 2019 OVO Energy Tour of Britain
Scotland will host the opening stage of the 2019 OVO Energy Tour of Britain on Saturday 7 September with Stage One of Britain’s national Tour beginning in George Square in Glasgow and finishing in Kirkcudbright, Dumfries and Galloway.
The stage will be jointly hosted by EventScotland, Glasgow Life and Dumfries and Galloway Council. Today announcement follows Glasgow and Scotland’s recent success in securing the inaugural UCI Cycling World Championships in 2023, which was announced earlier in the year.
This year’s race will begin on a Saturday for the first time since 2010, allowing the Glasgow Grand Depart to form part of an exciting weekend of cycling as the 20th anniversary edition of the Pedal for Scotland charity event departs from the city on the Sunday morning. The 2019 OVO Energy Tour of Britain will run over eight stages from Saturday 7 to Saturday 14 September.
Paul Bush OBE, VisitScotland’s Director of Events, said: “Events play a vital role in our visitor economy and the OVO Energy Tour of Britain is part of an exciting calendar of cycling events, taking place across Scotland this summer. With more than 2,000 miles of the National Cycle Network covering the country, the event provides the perfect stage to showcase this to an international audience of cycling enthusiasts.
“As a long-term partner, EventScotland is delighted to be continuing its support of the Tour of Britain in 2019. The successful hosting of this annual event has helped establish Scotland as a world leading sports destination, which, was key in securing the inaugural 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships.”
Dumfries and Galloway also most recently welcome the OVO Energy Tour of Britain in 2016, but has been a regular fixture on the route of Britain’s most prestigious cycle race, having hosted stages on nine previous occasions, with winners including Mark Cavendish, Edvald Boasson Hagen and Elia Viviani.
Councillor Adam Wilson, the Council’s Events Champion said, “Cycling fans in our corner of Scotland will be thrilled with the news that the Tour of Britain is to return to Dumfries and Galloway. The Tour is a much loved event here, and we are proud of our long association with the UK’s most significant cycling event. To host Stage One is a great privilege that we are delighted to accept and will work to ensure is a great success.”
OVO Energy Tour of Britain Race Director Mick Bennett said, “We are delighted to be returning to Scotland and look forward once again to a warm welcome for the opening stage of this country’s biggest professional bike race.
“Both Glasgow and Dumfries & Galloway have hosted some fantastic and memorable stages of the OVO Energy Tour of Britain, and I am confident that this September will be no different.”
