Nottingham will welcome the world’s top women cyclists this June, as the city hosts the penultimate stage of the Aviva Women’s Tour on Saturday 18 June.

Having hosted the equivalent men’s event, the Tour of Britain on numerous occasions in the past decade, most recently last September, this June will mark the first time that the Aviva Women’s Tour has visited the city.

Nottingham will host the start of the penultimate day’s racing, with Stage Four due to begin in the city before heading west and into Derbyshire at Long Eaton and on towards the Staffordshire Moorlands the stage finish in Stoke-on-Trent.

Councillor Dave Trimble, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture at Nottingham City Council, said: 

“Nottingham is delighted to welcome the Aviva Women’s Tour this June. Nottingham is proud to be a true cycling friendly city, with over 400km of cycling routes and a project to upgrade our core commuter cycling corridors due to be completed by spring 2017. We hope the Aviva Women’s Tour will encourage everyone, especially women, to make use of the excellent cycling routes we have here in Nottingham.”

96 riders from 16 teams will be in the race, with the world’s top riders, including the likes of World Champion Lizzie Armitstead and reigning Aviva Women’s Tour Champion Lisa Brennauer, expected to be amongst them.

Taking place over five days, the 2016 edition of the race will be a part of the new UCI Women’s WorldTour calendar, currently one of just four multi-day stage races on the season long programme of races for the world’s top riders and teams.  Highlights of each stage will be shown on ITV4 every evening during the race.

Commenting on the announcement, Aviva Women’s Tour Race Director Mick  Bennett said;

“Stage Four will connect two cities which both have a rich cycling heritage and have never before hosted the Aviva Women’s Tour.  Nottingham has become a centre hosting major women’s sporting events, making it a logical choice to host the Aviva Women’s Tour, while Stoke-on-Trent this year celebrates being the UK’s European City of Sport, with the stage finish being one of their major events for the year.

“While the opening half of this stage hugs the Derwent and Trent Valley’s, the latter half takes in the climbs of the Staffordshire Moorlands, which have time-and-time again proved a stern test in stages of the men’s Tour of Britain.”

Commenting on the route announcement, reigning World Road Race Champion Lizzie Armitstead of the Boels Dolmans team said; 

“It’s fantastic news that the Aviva Women’s Tour will continue in 2016. As a British rider it’s a privilege to be able to compete on home roads, the British public have really taken to cycling and you can see that when the race goes through different towns the community really gets behind it. 

“I’m excited to see the growth in women’s cycling and I think the Women’s Tour has had a really positive impact on that change.”

Reigning Aviva Women’s Tour champion Lisa Brennauer of the Canyon SRAM team said;

“I’m looking forward to coming back to the Aviva Women’s Tour 2016. The race last year was outstandingly well organised and the amount of people that came to watch and cheer for us was breath-taking. Including some new routes with more climbs and longer stages than before, the tour offers new opportunities and again huge possibilities for thrilling racing. I can’t wait to see all of you again.”

Further news about the detailed route of Stages Four, including the locations of Strava Queen of the Mountains climbs and the Chain Reaction Cycles Sprints, along with timings will be announced in the coming weeks along with the teams spectators can look forward to seeing in action at the Aviva Women’s Tour.