Devon leg of Tour of Britain still on

Planning continues for September event

Organisers of the Tour of Britain are still hopeful that the 2020 cycle race can go ahead in September.

The eight day cycle race is set to begin in Cornwall on Sunday 6 September with a stage between Penzance and Bodmin, before the second stage, the following day, would run between Sherford and Exeter.

Last week, the UCI, cycling’s world governing body, released a revised 2020 season calendar which would, coronavirus permitting, see the 107th Tour de France will now run from August 29 to September 20 and clash directly with the UK race.

But Hugh Roberts, CEO of promoter SweetSpot, said that the new dates for the Tour de France don’t affect their plans and they are cautiously continuing to plan for the race taking place.

Mr Roberts, in a statement sent to Cyclingnews, said: “We have to continue with our planning. If everything returned to somewhere close to normal by September, and we weren’t planning for it now, we wouldn’t be able to put it on at all.

“We have in our minds’ eye the third week of July – if we weren’t in a clearer position by then we would have to seriously consider our options, one of which would be to not run it at all. Postponing is not really an option. But for the moment we are continuing to plan for September.”

Mr Roberts added that he would be pleasantly surprised if the Tour de France took place, but that if it did, then it was almost certain that the Tour of Britain would be able to be held as normal. One potential issue with the clash of dates could be TV coverage, given both races are broadcast live on ITV4, but Roberts said that SweetSpot have been “working closely with ITV” to resolve this. 

Mr Roberts also said that it would be difficult for the race to be held ‘behind closed doors’, as you can’t run a race in lockdown situations, and that while you can prevent people travelling to watch the race, you can’t prevent people standing on their doorstep if the race is going past.”

Cllr Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member with responsibility for cycling, previously said: “With the Tour starting in our neighbouring county of Cornwall, it should be another spectacular Tour for our county. To give the riders and spectators two days in our region by racing through Devon as well as Cornwall has the potential for a big economic boost for our region and it’s always a great opportunity to showcase Devon as a premier destination for cycling tourism.”