Plans being made to replace Tour de Yorkshire with new-look event in the region

The Tour de Yorkshire will not return in its previous form after a breakdown in negotiations, but plans have been announced to launch a new-look event from 2024.

Talks between Silicon Dales, which bought the rights to the race after the collapse of Welcome To Yorkshire, and Tour de France owner the Amaury Sports Organisation failed to find an agreement for the return of the event which last ran in 2019.

But an agreement in principle has now been reached with SweetSpot, organisers of the Tour of Britain and Women’s Tour, to deliver a new race in time for the 10-year anniversary of the Grand Depart of the Tour de France in the region.

It is understood the new race is likely to be a one-day Classic-style event rather than a multi-day stage race – the men’s Tour de Yorkshire was a four-day race and the women’s a two-day event – but it is hoped it will carry the same UCI ranking.

The event – which will include both men’s and women’s editions of equal standing – will need a new identity as ASO owns the Tour de Yorkshire brand.

Silicon Dales, which acquired a number of Welcome To Yorkshire’s assets in an auction earlier this year, has reformed the tourism agency and will create a separate non-profit division to deliver cycling events in the region.

The company’s owner Robin Scott said: “We couldn’t have tried any harder to get agreement with ASO for the Tour de Yorkshire event, but we needed a partner on the delivery side who wanted the event to go ahead in future.

“In SweetSpot, who organise the Tour of Britain, we have found a partnership which will be good for Yorkshire.”

The deal with SweetSpot has not yet been finalised, but should see a number of races visit the region more regularly. That could see stages of both the