Overview
- Organisers confirmed six UK stages: men on July 2 Edinburgh to Carlisle, July 3 Keswick to Liverpool, July 4 Welshpool to Cardiff, and women on July 30 Leeds to Manchester, July 31 Manchester to Sheffield via Snake Pass, with a London stage on August 1 to be detailed in spring.
- Stage two’s Keswick–Liverpool route will traverse Lancaster, the Forest of Bowland and the Ribble Valley, take on climbs including Trough of Bowland, Waddington Fell, Belmont and Parbold, and pass through Blackburn and Darwen on council-confirmed roads such as Tockholes, Belmont and Rivington.
- Liverpool, Knowsley and St Helens will host the men’s stage-two finale with a super-sprint finish on The Strand along the waterfront in front of the Three Graces.
- British Cycling launched Joy, a social‑impact programme focused on activity, wellbeing and community pride, and plans to recruit more than 7,000 volunteers for roles in route operations, spectator support and community engagement.
- Organisers say the twin Grand Départs mark the first time both races start in the same country outside France, with free spectating along roughly 900 km of roads, illuminated host sites nationwide, and a DCMS forecast of a £150m economic boost.