Volunteer army set to welcome world to Tour extravaganza

Welcome to Yorkshire is recruiting “Le Tour Makers” to help welcome the world to the region during the opening stages of the world’s biggest cycling race.

The idea is inspired by the Games Makers who provided much of the manpower at the Olympics.

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The Games Makers were a huge success in London 2012 so we are looking to emulate and build on that when the eyes of the world are on Yorkshire in 2014.

“We are looking for a team of passionate volunteers who will help us to create the best ever Grand Départ in the history of the Tour de France.”

Around 70,000 Games Maker volunteers worked for a total of 8m hours at the Olympic Park last summer doing everything from welcoming visitors, checking tickets and stewarding events.

London Mayor Boris Johnson has since described them as “the beating heart of the Games” and Jean Tomlin, who was in charge of the Games Maker programme, was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours list.

It has yet to be confirmed how many volunteers will be recruited for the Grand Départ and what their responsibilities will be.

More than a million spectators are expected to flock to Yorkshire in July 2014 to watch as the biggest names in cycling race along the region’s roads.

And a global TV audience of more than two billion viewers will also be watching, it is predicted.

Clinching the Grand Départ has been described as Yorkshire’s “biggest ever sporting coup”.

Leeds is to be the official host city and starting line for the event it was confirmed last month after a hard-fought bid by Welcome To Yorkshire with support from local authorities across the region.

A festival of cycling and the arts will be held as the riders prepare to set off on their epic three-week journey to Paris on July 5.

Full details have yet to be announced but the Yorkshire Post understands York, Scarborough and Sheffield are to feature on the route, which is likely to include gruelling hill climbs in the Yorkshire Dales and across the North York Moors.

More details about the Grand Départ are to be announced on Thursday, January 17. It will be the first time cycling’s signature event has been held in England since 2007. More than £100m was generated for London when the capital hosted the Tour’s opening race.

Anyone interested in becoming a Le Tour Maker can register their interest at www.yorkshire.com/volunteer.