Vuelta could come to Yorkshire

Yorkshire is to bid to host the start of the Vuelta a España, its chief executive has confimed.

Having successfully  been the Grand Depart location for the 2014 Tour de France, the county has continued its high aspirations, winning the 2019 World Road Championships - the first to be held in England for 37 years.

Now, it has set its sights on the Vuelta, with chief executive Sir Gary Verity appealing to Javier Guillén, the director of the race.

He told Cycling Weekly: We have spoken to Javier and he knows if he brings the Vuelta to Yorkshire he'll be guaranteed huge crowds.

"That's obviously of interest to him and I'm sure at some point the Vuelta will come to the country.”

Earlier this year we reported how the 2016 Tour de Yorkshire boosted the region's economy by almost £60m, according to a study carried out by Leeds Beckett University.

As well as attracting more than two million roadside spectators, the second edition of the race was also watched by 11.4 million global TV viewers – almost double the amount in 2015.

The economic impact study was based on information gathered from 1,000 people at the race and online. It showed that the majority of spectators were from Yorkshire (79 per cent) with 21 per cent from elsewhere in the UK and abroad.

Spending was up by 20 per cent compared to 2015. Accommodation spend was up 27.8 per cent and spending on non-accommodation items, such as food and drink, souvenirs and transport, was also up by 12.4 per cent.