The opening stage of the Lloyds Bank Tour of Britain Men 2024, held entirely in the Scottish Borders, has been shortlisted as a national finalist in the Scottish Thistle Awards.
This was the tenth time in 15 years that the area had held a stage start or finish of the Tour of Britain Men and was followed this year with the area hosting the Tour of Britain Women, the first time this event has taken place in Scotland.
Highest accolade in Scottish tourism and events
The awards, managed by VisitScotland, are the highest accolade in the Scottish tourism and events sector. Our Tour of Britain stage has been shortlisted in the Outstanding Sporting Event category and at the national finals in November will go up against The Gralloch cycling event, also held in the south of Scotland, and the World Orienteering Championships 2024, held in Edinburgh.
Councillor Scott Hamilton, Executive Member for Economic Growth and Developing the Borders
“Being shortlisted in the most prestigious Scottish tourism and events awards is fantastic recognition of not only the Council’s investment and efforts to bring the Tour of Britain to the area but also the quality of the event and associated activities put on around it.
“It would not have been possible without the support of many partners, including British Cycling, EventScotland and Live Borders, and of course the Kelso and Melrose communities, where a range of activities took place.
“Last year’s stage received extremely positive feedback from spectators, including around food and drink options, event signage, access to see the event and the event village in Kelso. It was estimated that the event had an overall economic impact of £2.5million for the Scottish Borders, which reflects an incredible return on our investment.”
About our stage of the 2024 Tour
Stage one of last year’s race started in Kelso and covered 181.9km, including a pass through the start/finish line during the afternoon, two climbs of Scott’s View, two sprints in Melrose and a double ascent of the climb at Dingleton.
Eighteen of the world’s top cycling teams took part, with double Olympic gold medallist Remco Evenepoel, double world road race champion Julian Alaphilippe and Kelso’s own Oscar Onley among the riders competing.
The night before the 2024 race start a sold-out Tait Hall in Kelso enjoyed an evening of entertainment with the ITV4 cycling commentary team of Ned Boulting, David Millar and Pete Kennaugh and their ‘Never Strays Far’ podcast.
On race day itself, cycling activity sessions for young people were on offer in Kelso town centre and Gibson Park, Melrose, along with live music performances and other activities and attractions for all ages. In Melrose an outdoor cinema evening followed the event, showing cycling-themed short and feature length films.
Post-event research
Research by YouGov commissioned by British Cycling revealed the 2024 Lloyds Bank Tour of Britain Men had an overall impact of almost £2.5million for the Scottish Borders.
The figure took into account spend of attendees from outwith the area, the value of media coverage and local spend incurred by the organisers and competing teams.
South of Scotland Cycling Strategy
The South of Scotland Cycling Strategy aims to deliver long term benefits for all residents and businesses, from making the region an event location of choice for on and off-road cycling events to supporting active travel and improved health and wellbeing. The strategy also aims to make the South of Scotland the country’s leading cycling destination, with the worldwide media coverage and footage of the Tour of Britain helping to bring attention to our area.
In 2023 the South of Scotland was recognised by world cycling’s governing body as being a UCI Bike Region, due to the commitment to not just elite cycling but cycling for all.