Doncaster gearing up for return of town cycle festival

The town is racing towards another landmark year for cycling, as plans for the Doncaster Cycling Festival 2017 get underway.

While the Le Grand Depart stretch through Yorkshire in 2014 may have bypassed Doncaster completely, this did not stop the international cycle from having a lasting legacy in the borough.

This sparked a renewed interest in cycling and led to the creation of the first ever Doncaster Cycling Festival later that year.

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It is hoped that next year’s festival, which will be held on Sunday, June 11, will help build on the cycling renaissance in the town.

Speaking at a launch event for next year’s event, organiser Martin Maltby said he was gearing up for the Doncaster Cycling Festival 2017 to be the most successful yet.

Martin, who is also the Club President of the Doncaster Wheelers Cycling Club, said: “The Doncaster Cycling Festival is now one of the biggest community cycling events in the north of England.

“The festival began as an idea to have two cycling races in Doncaster on an evening after seeing the popularity of Le Grand Depart.

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“And when we realised it would cost us the same to have six races as it would to have two the festival has grown from there.

“The impact its had on cycling in Doncaster has been incredible.

“In 2014 when the festival started we had 10 youth riders and now we have 60. We also now have 180 members of the club, which is the highest amount the club has ever had in its 90-year history.”

Riders as young as six will be able to compete at the festival, which is set to attract cyclists from across the world.