News – Gilbert confirmed for Ride London Classic

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2012 world road race champion Philippe Gilbert heads the list of the first riders to be confirmed for the Prudential RideLondon- Surrey Classic on Sunday 10 August

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News – Gilbert confirmed for Ride London Classic

2012 world road race champion Philippe Gilbert heads the list of the first riders to be confirmed for the Prudential RideLondon- Surrey Classic on Sunday 10 August, part of the Mayor of London’s multi-award winning annual festival of cycling.

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• World road race champion leads BMC Racing team
• British star names include David Millar, Ben Swift and Yates brothers

The Belgian, who has won the likes of Liege-Bastogne-Liege, the Amstel Gold Race and the Tour of Lombardy, among a host of other titles, leads the BMC Racing team as he returns to race in Britain for the first time since the 2012 Olympics.

Gilbert is one of several star names to be confirmed today for the 200-kilometre race. The list also includes David Millar – who was devastated to miss out on selection for the Tour de France – in his final season of racing on the road.

Millar’s Garmin Sharp teammate Dan Martin, like Gilbert a former winner of the Liege-Bastogne-Liege classic, will also compete as he returns to racing after a crash in the Giro d’Italia in May.

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There will be further British interest as Ben Swift, a top 10 finisher in last year’s event, returns with Team Sky, while fans will also have a chance to cheer on rising international star Simon Yates, who made a big impression in his Tour de France debut with two breakaways in mountain stages, in action with Orica GreenEDGE.

Joining Simon will be twin brother Adam, winner of the Tour of Turkey earlier this summer, with Prudential RideLondon set to be one of his final events before making his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a Espana later in August.

The revised route for 2014, which includes multiple circuits in the Surrey Hills and additional sections of the 2012 Olympic Road Race route, such as the climb of Staple Lane, could produce a more aggressive race and favour the likes of Gilbert and Martin.

At the same time, several top sprinters such as Elia Viviani (Cannondale Pro Cycling), 2013 Milan San Remo winner Gerald Ciolek (MTN Qhubeka) and rising Irish star Sam Bennett (Team NetApp Endura) will all be hoping that the race comes down to a bunch sprint on The Mall in St James’s Park.

The race will be covered live on BBC1 and British Eurosport and shown internationally in more than 160 countries worldwide.

As the most anticipated event of the Prudential RideLondon weekend, Londoners, visitors to the capital and Surrey residents are expected to turn out in force to see 150 of the world’s top men race over an extended, tougher route in this 1.HC status UCI classified race (the second-highest international classification). The event will bring the weekend to a thrilling conclusion.

Held for the first time in 2013, Prudential RideLondon immediately set new records as it became the largest inaugural mass-participation event in the world with 66,000+ participants and raised more than £7 million for charity, making it the largest charity cycling event in the UK. An unprecedented 99 per cent of participants rated the event good or excellent and the festival has won seven national awards.

In order to safely facilitate this world-class event, road and bridge closures will be in place across the weekend. On Saturday 9 August road closures will primarily be in central London.

On Sunday 10 August, large numbers of road and bridge closures across east, central and south west London and Surrey will be in place. Drivers are advised where possible to change their route to avoid disruption. Tube, rail, walking and cycling will be the best ways to get around the capital and to enjoy the weekend. For more information visit tfl.gov.uk/prudentialridelondon and www.PrudentialRideLondon.co.uk.

 

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