Olympic champion Katie Archibald excited to welcome The Women's Tour to London

BySportsbeat

Published 15/02/2017 at 18:24 GMT

Olympic team pursuit champion Katie Archibald admits she can't wait to take to London's roads for The Women's Tour after it was announced that the 2017 route will culminate in the capital.

Katie Archibald wins the omnium

Image credit: AFP

The world leading race, in its fourth year, will also include stages in Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire and Derbyshire.

The world's top 15 teams will take part in the race which forms part of the UCI Women's WorldTour, with Boels Dolmans rider Lizzie Deignan looking to retain her title from last year.

The final stage of the Tour will take in some of London's tourist hotspots, including Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square and Whitehall over 14 laps of a six-kilometre circuit.

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"The race being hosted by London is a fantastic opportunity for women's cycling and shows how far the sport has grown over the past couple of years," said Archibald.

"I'm excited but also nervous about the opportunity to ride The Women's Tour since it's one of the most competitive stage races on the women's UCI calendar.

"Riding for Team WNT, I hope to make an impact on the road scene after a change of focus from an enjoyable track season in 2016."

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, added: "I'm really excited that the most prestigious women's cycling race in the world is coming to the streets of central London for the first time.

"Londoners will be able to see their Olympic heroes and the world's top riders competing up close, reviving the excitement we all felt during the Olympics.

"The race shows our continuing commitment to London hosting the very best sporting events in the world."

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