Thousands of cheering locals welcome the Tour de Yorkshire to Penistone
- Amelia French
- Apr 30, 2017
- 3 min read
As the final stage of the Tour de Yorkshire passed through Penistone earlier today, crowds were larger than ever before.
Penistone and it's surrounding villages have been praised by the Tour de Yorkshire makers, and the cyclists themselves, for their support on the day and their efforts to ensure the town looked its very best.
Throughout April, local homeowners and businesses have been preparing Penistone for the race. As well as decorating the market town with blue and yellow bunting, painted bicycles, original artwork and a variety of banners, Penistone organised their own celebrations for the day itself.
[Pictured above: Artist Suze Crawshaw painted a Tour de Yorkshire cycling design over the broken post office window after complaints from members of the community that it looked messy. Crawshaw also created a steel sculpture for the event which resides on the 'Penistone one' building.]
From 10am this morning, amateur cycling races have been taking place on various routes around the town. A childrens fairground with small rides and stalls was also constructed in Penistone Paramount car park.
Live music from local musicians and singers has taken place at 4 staged areas in the centre of Penistone, including the Old Crown. Local businesses and restaurants have stalls selling everything from Chinese cuisine to cycling equipment.
By 1pm, thousands of villagers and visitors lined the streets. With a cold beer from The Legion in one hand and a Yorkshire flag in the other, supporters greeted the Tour Caravan with enthusiastic cheers.
Community Cheers
The third stage of the Tour began in Bradford at 12:10pm on Sunday 30th April. After cycling North to Skipton, the route veered South travelling through Keighley and Halifax.
Local towns Millhouse Green, Thurlstone, Penistone and Oxspring were amongst those visited on the route, before heading to the finish line 37km away at Fox Valley, Stocksbridge.
[Pictured above: Stage three of the Tour de Yorkshire. The route began at 12:30pm in Bradford and was set to finish at the new shopping centre, Fox Valley, in Stocksbridge at 5pm.]
After hours of anticipation, the Tour's cyclists hurtled past. A breakaway group of six led by Latvian cyclist Gatis Smukulis arrived first, followed by the remaining cyclists shortly after.
Unfortunately, three members of Great Britain's cycling team had a small crash outside the Taste of Indian restaurant at Bridge End. Although the crash appeared severe to onlookers, the racers were back up and on their bicycles within a matter of minutes.
The race itself was gone within a matter of seconds. But, spirits remained high and celebrations in the town are still continuing at the local pubs and fair.
[Video: Watch how Penistone celebrated the Tour de Yorkshire flying through their small market town.]
And the winner is..
Between Penistone and the Fox Valley finish line, it was still all to play for.
The steep hill stages between the two towns separated the group. Serge Pauwel developed a 20 second lead, but was it enough to keep him in the lead?
[The Dimension Data teammates crossed the finish line within seconds of one another. Pauwel was the third stage and overall winner of the Tour de Yorkshire 2017.]
Pauwel took home the gold, though he was closely followed by Dimension Data teammate, Omar Fraile. Jonathan Hivert, Direct Energy, came in third.
The Tours winner praised the crowds, including those in Penistone, that had gathered to support the race. "I've ridden all around the world, and if I would make a top three of the most amazing crowds, I think the people here in Yorkshire are in there for sure."
World class riding, an amazing atmosphere and greater support than ever before.
Same again next year?
To watch highlights of the tour passing through Yorkshire, visit the Official Tour de Yorkshire website here.
Comments