Swift joins Cavendish and Wiggins for Tour of Britain

Rotherham sprinter Ben Swift leads the Team Sky challenge at the Tour of Britain, which begins tomorrow in Wales.
Ben Swift (Picture: Simon Wilkinson/swpix.com)Ben Swift (Picture: Simon Wilkinson/swpix.com)
Ben Swift (Picture: Simon Wilkinson/swpix.com)

The 27-year-old is a month into his return from shoulder surgery caused when he crashed on stage one of the Tour de Yorkshire in May.

He finished third at the Prudential Ride London at the start of August and spearheads the team of the Tour de France champions, which also includes Ian Stannard, Pete Kennaugh and Elia Viviani.

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Swift said: “The Tour of Britain has become one of the stand-out races in the cycling calendar.

“It’s a very special feeling to race in front of your home fans and see the fantastic support that we get every year.

“Cycling has never been more popular in the UK and the crowds at the Tour of Britain get bigger with each edition of the race, which is great to see.

“This will be my seventh appearance at this race and I know just how tough the British roads can be, but we have a strong team and we’ll certainly be challenging for stage wins and the overall GC.”

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Gabriel Cullaigh, 19, of Holmfirth is on the six-man Great Britain team.

The headline acts are Mark Cavendish on the Etixx-QuickStep team while Sir Bradley Wiggins rides for the team that bears his name.

Further Yorkshire interest is provided by Leeds’s Josh Edmondson on the An-Post Chain reaction squad, Rotherham’s Russell Downing for Cult Energy Pro, Doncaster’s Tom Stewart for Madison Genesis and Skipton’s Pete Williams with the OnePro squad.

The race begins in Anglesey tomorrow and briefly heads towards Yorkshire on Monday when riders tackle the climb up Blearer Moor, near Lothersdale.

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