London–Surrey Classic
 | |
| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Date | August |
| Region | Great Britain |
| Discipline | Road |
| Competition | UCI Europe Tour (Cat 1.HC) |
| Type | One-day |
| Organiser | London & Surrey Cycling Partnership (LSCP) |
| History | |
| First edition | 2011 |
| Editions | 5 (as of 2015) |
| First winner |
 Mark Cavendish (GBR) |
| Most recent |
 Jempy Drucker (LUX) |
The London–Surrey Classic (also known as the RideLondon–Surrey Classic) is an annual 193 km (119.9 mi) men's professional one-day road bicycle racing starting and finishing in London and routed via the picturesque Surrey Hills. The first race of its kind was the London–Surrey Cycle Classic, on 14 August 2011, a 1.2 classification[1] 140 km preparatory event for the London 2012 Olympics, which was won by sprinter Mark Cavendish. The men's and women's Olympic road races were held on a longer variation of the same course the following year. On 4 August 2013, the race found a permanent home as part of the Prudential RideLondon weekend, a two-day cycling festival held in London, a legacy event of the Olympics. The Prudential RideLondon–Surrey Classic is part of the UCI Europe Tour and is classified as a 1.HC category event.[2]
History
Origins
The RideLondon event, including the RideLondon–Surrey Classic, is a legacy event of the 2012 Summer Olympics and the idea for the elite race can be traced back to the successful organisation and public reaction to the Olympic Road Cycling races in 2012 and the Olympic test event, the London-Surrey Cycle Classic, held a year earlier.
The route chosen for the RideLondon–Surrey Classic is a variation on that used by both the London-Surrey Cycle Classic and the Olympic Road Cycling races.
London-Surrey Cycle Classic
A part of the London Prepares series a one-off one-day 140 km (87.0 mi) cycle race was organised for the 14 August 2011 acting as a test event for the Olympic Road Cycling events to be held the following year. The race was named the London-Surrey Cycle Classic and was part of the 2010–11 UCI Europe Tour as a 1.2 category event.[3]
The race started and finished on The Mall in London and featured two laps of a 15.5 km (9.6 mi) circuit centred on Box Hill in Surrey.[4] 138 riders from 19 national teams and 10 trade teams took part in the race, and was won by Mark Cavendish in a sprint finish.[5]
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics held road cycling races for both men and women on a largely similar course to that of the London-Surrey Cycle Classic held the previous year.
Men's race
The men's 250 km (155.3 mi) course included nine laps of the 15.5 km (9.6 mi) Box Hill circuit and was held on the 28 July 2012. 144 riders from 63 nations took part in the race. The race was won by Kazakhstan's Alexander Vinokourov. He sprinted clear of Colombia's Rigoberto Urán, who claimed the silver medal. Alexander Kristoff of Norway won the sprint from the following group to take bronze.[6]
Women's race
The women's 140 km (87.0 mi) course included two laps of the 15.5 km (9.6 mi) Box Hill circuit and was held on the 29 July 2012. 66 riders from 36 nations took part in the race. The race and gold medal was won by Marianne Vos of the Netherlands. Great Britain's Lizzie Armitstead was second, collecting silver, and Russia's rider Olga Zabelinskaya won the bronze in third place.[7]
RideLondon–Surrey Classic
The RideLondon weekend, including the RideLondon–Surrey Classic, was announced by the Mayor of London Boris Johnson on the 10 August 2012, less than two weeks after the Olympic Road Cycling races.[8] RideLondon is managed by the London & Surrey Cycling Partnership, a joint venture between the organisers of the London Marathon and The Tour of Britain.
The inaugural RideLondon–Surrey Classic was run as a 1.1 category event on the 2013 UCI Europe Tour. The UCI upgraded the classification for the 2014 race which will be run as a 1.HC category event on the 2014 UCI Europe Tour; the same classification as Paris–Tours and Milano–Torino.[9]
Route
The RideLondon–Surrey Classic route is a variation of the course used for the 2012 Summer Olympics.[10] The route features both categorised climbs and intermediate sprint points.
Riders start from the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park close to the Olympic Velodrome before passing close to Canary Wharf and the Tower of London on the way through central London. Leaving London by the A4 the route passes through Richmond Park, Kingston upon Thames and Hampton Court Palace. In Surrey the route passes through Weybridge and Ripley on the way to the first of the categorised climbs and the leafy villages of the Surrey Hills.
Multiple laps of hilly terrain in the vicinity of Dorking incorporate further categorised climbs, including Leith Hill - the highest point in South-East England. On the return to London the route takes in the final categorised climb of Box Hill before the largely flat run-in via Oxshott, Kingston upon Thames, Wimbledon and Putney. The final kilometres follow the Embankment, past the Palace of Westminster, along Whitehall and turning right through Admiralty Arch before the finish on The Mall.
Sprints classification
Intermediate Sprints count towards the sprints classification; the points distribution for this classification is as follows:
| Sprint | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intermediate Sprint | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Note that points are not awarded at the finish line.
King of the Mountains classification
Categorised climbs count towards the King of the Mountains classification; the points distribution for this classification is as follows:
| Category | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cat 1 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Cat 2 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Cat 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
The categorised climbs that have featured in the RideLondon–Surrey Classic include:
| Climb | Editions | Category | Length | Ascent | Average grade | Max. grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box Hill[11] | 2013-2014 | Cat 2 | 2.5 km (1.6 mi) | 123 m (404 ft) | 4.9% | 10.9% |
| Coldharbour[12] | 2014 | Cat 2 | 1.8 km (1.1 mi) | 130 m (427 ft) | 7.2% | 14.2% |
| Denbies Wine Estate[13] | 2014 | Cat 2 | 2.5 km (1.6 mi) | 137 m (449 ft) | 5.5% | 13.1% |
| Newlands Corner[14] | 2013 | Cat 3 | 1.8 km (1.1 mi) | 84 m (276 ft) | 4.7% | 9.6% |
| Staple Lane[15] | 2014 | Cat 2 | 1.4 km (0.9 mi) | 82 m (269 ft) | 5.9% | 9.9% |
| Leith Hill[16] | 2013 | Cat 2 | 2.1 km (1.3 mi) | 139 m (456 ft) | 6.6% | 11.8% |
Winners
Overall winners
| Rider | Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | |
Cavendish, MarkMark Cavendish (GBR) | Great Britain national team |
| 2012 |  |
Vinokourov, AlexanderAlexander Vinokourov (KAZ) | Kazakhstan Olympic team |
| 2013 |  |
Démare, ArnaudArnaud Démare (FRA) | FDJ.fr |
| 2014 | |
Blythe, AdamAdam Blythe (GBR) | NFTO Pro Cycling |
| 2015 | |
Drucker, JempyJempy Drucker (LUX) | BMC Racing Team |
Overall winners by nationality
| # of victories | Country |
|---|---|
| 2 | United Kingdom |
| 1 | France |
| 1 | Kazakhstan |
| 1 | Luxembourg |
Sprints classification winners
| Rider | Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 |  |
Sinkeldam, RamonRamon Sinkeldam (NED) | Argos–Shimano |
| 2014 | |
Lammertink, StevenSteven Lammertink (NED) | Giant–Shimano |
| 2015 | |
Williams, PeterPeter Williams (GBR) | ONE Pro Cycling |
King of the Mountains classification winners
| Rider | Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | |
Sinkeldam, RamonRamon Sinkeldam (NED) | Argos–Shimano |
| 2014 | |
Lampier, SteveSteve Lampier (GBR) | Velosure–Giordana |
| 2015 | |
Rowsell, ErickErick Rowsell (GBR) | Madison Genesis |
Records
- The fastest RideLondon–Surrey Classic was in 2013, by Arnaud Démare at a speed of 43.09 km/h (26.77 mph).
- The highest number of finishers was in 2013 - 131 out of 147 starters completed the course within the time limit.
Future
Surrey County Council has agreed to support the RideLondon events until 2018, with an option of a further two-year extension.[17] The RideLondon event director, Hugh Brasher, has stated his ambitions to attain UCI World Tour status for the RideLondon–Surrey Classic by 2016.[18] This was backed up by positive rider reaction following the inaugural race, including from Arnaud Démare's teammate Dominique Rollin.[19]
References
- ↑ http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/london-surrey-cycle-classic-1-2/results
- ↑ "UCI Road Calendar — 2014 Europe Tour". Retrieved 28 September 2013.
- ↑ "UCI Road Calendar — 2010-2011 Europe Tour". Retrieved 11 August 2013.
- ↑ Will Irwin and Andy McGrath (12 August 2011). "London – Surrey Cycle Classic the big preview". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
- ↑ Andy McGrath & Nigel Wynn (14 August 2011). "Cavendish wins London–Surrey Cycle Classic". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
- ↑ "Vinokurov claims Road Race gold". London 2012. 28 July 2012.
- ↑ "Vos wins thrilling Road Race". London 2012. 29 July 2012.
- ↑ "Mayor announces world class RideLondon event to take forward capital’s Olympic legacy". Mayor of London. 10 August 2012.
- ↑ "2014 Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic awarded hors catégorie status". Cycling Weekly. 27 September 2013.
- ↑ "Britain gets set to host its biggest ever one-day race". Prudential RideLondon. 6 February 2013.
- ↑ "Box Hill GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ↑ "Coldharbour GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
- ↑ "Denbies GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
- ↑ "Newlands Corner GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ↑ "Staple Lane GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
- ↑ "Leith Hill GPX Track". Ride With GPS. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ↑ "Prudential RideLondon FAQs". Prudential RideLondon. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
- ↑ "A thrilling showpiece for British cycling". The Telegraph. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
- ↑ "Rollin tips RideLondon–Surrey Classic for WorldTour". Cycling News. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to London – Surrey Cycle Classic. |
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