9.29°C The Tour of Britain, the UK’s biggest professional bicycle race and the centrepiece of the British cycling calendar, comes to Colchester on Friday 17 September 2010.
Some of the world’s top cyclists – riders who compete in events such as the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia – will race on local roads for the right to wear the yellow jersey. Over the past five years, Olympic, World and Commonwealth champions have all taken part in the Tour of Britain.
To celebrate the event, Colchester Borough Council and Essex County Council are organising a large-scale Cycling Festival in Castle Park.
From 5pm to 7pm, organisations can take part in grass-track racing at Castle Park. Colchester Rovers will run a grass track competition in Hollytrees Meadow, with local businesses invited to enter teams of three to four cyclists.
Participants must provide their own bikes and helmets. A variety of races will take place throughout the afternoon, including team sprints, heats and scratch races. The overall winning team will be presented with a trophy at the close of the event.
Entry costs £20 per team, with proceeds donated to the Mayor’s Charities. Entries must be received by 5pm on Friday, 10 September.
Organisations are also encouraged to promote cycling to work on the day. For those who may be a little out of practice – or whose bikes need attention – Colchester’s Cycle Champion, Richard Monk, will be available to help companies prepare.
The 2010 Tour of Britain runs over eight stages from 11–18 September. Colchester hosts the finish of Stage Seven on Friday, 17 September. The stage begins in Bury St Edmunds at 10.15am and is expected to finish in Colchester at around 1.40pm.
