The Transport for London Stage to take place at the heart of London in 2011 for spectacular final day

SweetSpot Group are pleased to announce that the final stage of The Tour of Britain will once again take place in central London in 2011, with The Transport for London Stage finishing on Whitehall on Sunday 18th September.

Having successfully held stages on an iconic circuit at the heart of London in 2008 and 2009, The Tour of Britain will once again return to Westminster and the City of London for its final stage, using the same circuit that has proved so popular with spectators in previous editions.

This year’s final day is predicted to be even more popular, falling as it does on a Sunday, and also providing a chance to see some of Britain and the World’s top cyclists in action on the streets of London less than a year before the Olympic Games take place in the city.

“For our partners and sponsors and of course our fans it is very important that we return to central London, for what will be a spectacular finish to The 2011 Tour of Britain”, said Hugh Roberts, Chief Executive of SweetSpot Group.

“As Britain’s biggest professional cycle race and this country’s largest free-to-spectate sporting event it is important that we finish with an iconic finale, and as we showed in 2008 and 2009 there is no better place to hold The Tour of Britain than at the heart of London.

“This is a major commitment from us as organizers of The Tour of Britain, and we can now look forward to working with our partners Transport for London over the coming months to make Sunday 18th September a great celebration of cycling and a huge success for all parties.

“We are planning a full programme of events on the day surrounding The Tour of Britain, including The Prostate Cancer Charity Tour Ride, schools events and a unique corporate charity fundraising event.”

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, said: “The Tour of Britain is a fantastic event and I am thrilled to be able to support it. I would urge Londoners and visitors to turn out and cheer on the cyclists as they whizz past some of the capital’s iconic landmarks and raise money for a really worthwhile cause.”

On each of the previous occasions that The Tour of Britain has used the Whitehall and Victoria Embankment circuit the race has come down to a battle between the top sprinters, and Race Director Mick Bennett believes that this will be the case in 2011.

“As previous years have shown the circuit we are using is perfectly suited to the sprinters, so I expect to see the stage again culminate in a bunch sprint. In previous years riders of the calibre of Mark Cavendish, Matt Goss and Andre Greipel have all won sprint stages, so I’m sure that 2011 will be no different.

“With the World Championships in Copenhagen just a week after The Tour of Britain, this will be a dress rehearsal for some of the world’s top sprinters to go head-to-head before the Worlds. The course in Denmark looks to be suited to the sprinters, so there is a very real chance that we could see a World Champion in waiting winning in London at The Tour of Britain.

“I’d also like to thank Newham Council for hosting the final stage of The Tour of Britain in 2010, when the Pope’s visit meant we were unable to bring the race into central London. Newham were fantastic hosts and helped us to exceed all expectations for the stage, and we gave very serious consideration to returning to London’s Olympic and Paralympic Borough this year.

“However for technical reasons faced by ourselves and Newham Council it just wouldn’t have been possible for them to host The Tour of Britain in 2011, so we are very much looking forward to returning to Westminster and the City of London in London’s pre-Olympic year.”

In addition to the professional racing, members of the public will for the third year have the opportunity to compare themselves against the professionals with The Prostate Cancer Charity Tour Ride London. Details of the Ride and how to sign-up and help combat prostate cancer by raising funds and awareness for The Prostate Cancer Charity will be available soon at www.tourride.co.uk

The Prostate Cancer Charity’s Chief Executive, John Neate, said: “We are delighted to be heading back to the heart of London for The Prostate Cancer Charity Tour Ride. Cycling past the hugely iconic sights of Westminster proved hugely popular in 2009 with cyclists of all ages and abilities and added a special offering to our events portfolio. We also look forward to building our hugely successful partnership with The Tour of Britain further. More than 4,500 people took part in one of the Charity’s rides last year and we are looking forward to building momentum in 2011.”

Scotland will be the perfect stage for The Tour of Britain Grand Depart on Sunday 11th September, with full details of the entire race route, that will culminate in London, to be announced at the National Launch in the Spring.

The Tour of Britain is proud to be partnered with The Prostate Cancer Charity. Don’t forget this summer your chance to follow in the wheel tracks of the professionals and ride stages from The Tour of Britain.