Crowds lined roads through North Yorkshire today as some of the world’s leading cyclists raced across the county on the toughest stage of this year’s Tour of Britain.
Spectators gathered in towns and villages along the 165.8km route from Helmsley to Leyburn, with communities decorating streets and turning out to cheer on the riders as the race travelled from the North York Moors into the Yorkshire Dales.
The route took the peloton through Easingwold, Boroughbridge, Ripon and Pateley Bridge before heading into the Dales through Grassington, Kettlewell, Buckden and Aysgarth, with a final series of climbs before the finish in Leyburn.
Hundreds of people also gathered in Leyburn, where the Market Place was transformed into an event village for the town’s first finish in the modern Tour of Britain.
Entertainment had been taking place throughout the day, with live music, dancing and race coverage on a big screen before spectators lined the barriers to watch the riders race into town.
Communities along the route had shared £9,178 in funding to help them celebrate the occasion, with decorations including bunting, banners, decorated bicycles and Yorkshire Rose artwork.
The stage was won by Dutch rider Cees Bol, who beat Tim Wellens in a two-man sprint into Leyburn.
Wellens’ performance was enough to give him the overall race lead after he launched a decisive attack around Redmire during the closing stages of the race.
The North Yorkshire leg featured around 2,700 metres of climbing and had been billed as the toughest stage of this year’s event.
The large turnout continued North Yorkshire’s strong association with professional cycling following previous visits by the Tour de France, Tour de Yorkshire and UCI Road World Championships.
The Tour of Britain concludes tomorrow with stage five around Earlston in the Scottish Borders.
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