Tour de Yorkshire 2016 start and finish towns revealed

Welcome to Yorkshire have revealed where the three stages of the 2016 Tour de Yorkshire will start and finish, with Scarbrough the only town from the inaugural edition to host the race again.

Beverley, Otley, Doncaster, Settle and Middlesbrough are also selected to host a start or finish, but it has not been revealed which ones will feature on which stage. The race will run between Friday, April 29 and Sunday, May 1, while the women's race will be held on Saturday, April 30.

Otley, home to Britain's new world champion Lizzie Armitstead, featured on the race route in 2015, with the climbs of Cow & Calf and Otley Chevin climbs in close proximity.

Fellow market town Settle also gets the nod, with its location on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales promising some picturesque racing.

Sir Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “From the first moments of the inaugural Tour de Yorkshire, everyone who was there knew it was something special.  I’m delighted that we are able to bring the 2016 race to all four corners of Yorkshire.

"It is testament to how much the county has taken the race to its heart that we have been oversubscribed for next year’s starts and finishes.

“The Tour de Yorkshire is an event in the cycling calendar that riders want to race in and we look forward to welcoming some of the world’s best riders back to Yorkshire next year.”

Organisers also announced four of the start and finish towns for the 2017 race, with Fox Valley (Sheffield), Halifax, Harrogate and Selby to play host.

The race failed in its bid to increase to four days in 2016, with British Cycling opposing the application. The 2015 race was won by Team Sky's Lars Petter Nordhaug.