Yorkshire '˜quietly confident' of winning world road race cycle championships tomorrow

Yorkshire will learn on Wednesday whether its place as one of the leading destinations for world cycling is secure when the sport's governing body names hosts for future versions of the world road race championships.
Lizzie Armitstead, now Deignan, at the Tour de Yorkshire race from Otley to Doncaster in AprilLizzie Armitstead, now Deignan, at the Tour de Yorkshire race from Otley to Doncaster in April
Lizzie Armitstead, now Deignan, at the Tour de Yorkshire race from Otley to Doncaster in April

The White Rose county, which staged a memorable Tour de France Grand Depart two years ago, has bid to host the 2019 UCI Road World Championships, with organisers ‘quietly confident’ that their proposal will prevail.

The bid is a joint venture between UK Sport, Welcome to Yorkshire, British Cycling and the Department of Culture Media and Sport. The UK government has pledged to underwrite the total cost of £24m.

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Yorkshire faces competition for the 2019 race from Colombia, Canada, Italy and Germany, though not all of those bids - Colombia in particular - have specified a year.

A decision will be made today by the management committee of the UCI who are meeting in Doha, site of this week’s 2016 world championships. An announcement is expected later this afternoon.

Given the money involved and the global acclaim the county received for its staging of the Tour de France Grand Depart in 2014, the feeling from within is one of optimism that Yorkshire will be successful.

If so, the 2019 UCI Road World Championships would be staged in September. This year’s event has been pushed back a month due to the climate in the Qatar.

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No route has yet been decided but it is understood it will take in all four corners of the county.

A road world championships is a week-long festival of cycling, with races including individual and team time-trials, Under-23 races, and culminating in the men’s and women’s road races on the final two days.

Yorkshire’s own Lizzie Deignan, nee Armitstead, defends the world title she won in the United States on Saturday in Doha.

Further cause for celebration should the county win the bid is the wide-ranging legacy projects that would come to fruition.

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British Cycling negotiated a £15m package of nationwide investment alongside the bid, to further develop cycling facilities and grow participation.

This funding will provide for 27 purpose-built cycle-sport facilities across the disciplines.

Many of these would be closed road circuits - for riding away from motor vehicles - but there would also be outdoor velodromes, BMX tracks and mountain bike trails.