Bradley Wiggins and Marcel Kittel have been confirmed for the inaugural Tour de Yorkshire, taking place over May 1-3.
Multi-Olympic and 2012 Tour de France champion Wiggins will be a part of his newly-formed WIGGINS squad, with German sprinter Kittel lining up for WorldTour outfit Giant-Alpecin.
Wiggins was granted special dispensation by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to take part in the event as he transfers mid-season from Team Sky to WIGGINS.
The two teams are part of a 16-squad line-up for the new UCI 2.1-ranked race, which serves as a legacy event after the Tour de France’s successful Grand Depart from the region in 2014.
Five WorldTour teams will take to the start line in Bridlington on May 1: Giant-Alpecin (Germany), BMC Racing (USA), LottoNL-Jumbo (Netherlands), IAM Cycling (Switzerland) and British team Sky.
One notable absence from the list is Mark Cavendish‘s Etixx-QuickStep team, which means that fans will be denied the sight of a sprint showdown between Kittel and the Manxman.
Tour de Yorkshire stage timings and where to watch
We run through the Yorkshire hot spots where you'll get the best views of the 2018 edition of the Tour
In addition to the WorldTour line-ups, six Professional Continental teams, four Continental teams and a Great Britain national squad will take part.
French teams Cofidis and Europcar are included, as are MTN-Qhubeka (South Africa), Cult Energy (Denmark), Roompot Oranje Peloton (Netherlands) and Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise (Belgium).
Team Sky return to Yorkshire in May
The remaining British teams are: WIGGINS, NFTO, One Pro Cycling, Madison Genesis and a Great Britain national team. There’s no ride for British stalwarts Raleigh or JLT Condor, nor Irish outfit AN Post-Chain Reaction.
>>> Wiggins gets green light to join new team in May and ride Tour de Yorkshire
Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme said: “We will be glad to return to Yorkshire after the huge success of the Tour de France 2014 Grand Départ, the grandest ever. The first ever Tour de Yorkshire will be another occasion to showcase the outstanding landscapes of the county, especially of the coast which we didn’t visit last year with Le Tour.
“Tour de Yorkshire will be a great opportunity to review young talents among British riders and enable them to ride with top Tour de France professional teams and cycling stars like Sir Bradley Wiggins and Marcel Kittel.”
The Tour de Yorkshire is jointly run by Tour de France organiser Amaury Sport Organisation and Welcome to Yorkshire.
Tour de Yorkshire 2015 teams
BMC Racing (USA)
Cofidis (France)
Cult Energy (Denmark)
Europcar (France)
Giant-Alpecin (Germany)
Great Britain national team (Great Britain)
IAM Cycling (Switzerland)
LottoNL-Jumbo (Netherlands)
Madison Genesis (Great Britain)
MTN-Qhubeka (South Africa)
NFTO (Great Britain)
One Pro Cycling (Great Britain)
Roompot Oranje Peloton (Netherlands)
Team Sky (Great Britain)
Team WIGGINS (Great Britain)
Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise (Belgium)
