The Tour of Britain, the biggest cycling race in the UK and one of the biggest in Europe, is back for 2023 and this year the international sporting event will be starting in Altrincham.
With the Altrincham hosting the start line for the second time in the competition’s 73-year history, the Tour of Britain and its massive crowds will be treated to some proper Manc hospitality and be able to watch the riders get underway from one of the best places to live anywhere in the UK.
The opening stage begins in Trafford’s beloved market town on Sunday, 3 September, and although the final section began there back in 2019, this is the first time the Grand Départ has taken place in Alty since the event restarted and the modern era began in 2004.
It’s going to be a special one.
This year's Tour of Britain 🇬🇧 will begin in the award-winning market town of Altrincham on Sunday 3 September.#TourOfBritain 🔴🔵⚪
— The Tour of Britain 🇬🇧 (@TourofBritain) July 27, 2023
The peloton will roll out from Market Street close to the famous Altrincham Market right in the heart of the town centre, which is so loved by locals and tourists alike that it won the Great British High Street Award for England in 2018.
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Although the distance of each section is yet to be confirmed, the opening stage is expected to last approximately 166km if the last time out is anything to go by and will finish along Deansgate in the heart of Manchester city centre, where Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel won in 2019.
In case you were unaware of just how massive this event is, that year there was an estimated 600,000 spectators watching roadside across Greater Manchester — the biggest single-day crowd in race history. Here are some of the highlights if you fancy getting yourself in the mood for race day:
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The opening stage route will see riders cycle through Altrincham, Hazel Grove in Stockport, Grains Bar in Oldham, Ramsbottom Rake in Bury and then finally Deansgate.
Speaking on the announcement, Altrincham’s Business Improvement District Manager, Mandy White, said: “We’re absolutely delighted that the Tour of Britain is returning to Altrincham for the Grand Départ Sunday, 3 September. It’s fantastic for the town to host such a high-profile, international sporting event and we look forward to welcoming thousands of visitors to Altrincham.”
It’s obviously totally free to turn up and watch but race fans can also enhance their race day experience by watching the starting gun from Altrincham’s Sportsbreaks.com terrace.
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As for those who simply want to watch at home, ITV4 will be showing live flag-to-flag coverage of every stage, as well as a nightly highlights show, allowing fans all across the country to enjoy the action, as well as international broadcasts on Discovery Player and GCN+.
Since its return in 2004, the Tour of Britain has become a cornerstone of the UK sporting calendar, with over 15 million people turning up to watch the event in person and generating more than £330m for the UK economy. Make no mistake, this is a massive annual event and Manchester’s lucky to play its part.
It goes without saying that Manchester’s connections with the sport are huge and plain for all to see, not only being the home of British Cycling, its national governing body and the National Cycling Centre, but also hosting the finale of the 2022 Tour Series.
As for Altrincham, we couldn’t have put it better than Tom Ross of Trafford Council: “Trafford is renowned for hosting world-class sport so it is a pleasure and honour to have the Grand Départ here in Altrincham. Last time, thousands of people came to cheer on the cyclists and enjoy the delights of our award-winning market town and I’m confident even more people will want to come and experience the opening of this illustrious event.”
He’s not wrong, in case you weren’t aware, Manchester is a sporting mecca and Trafford might just be the unofficial capital.
‘Nothing is eternal’: Is Pep Guardiola hinting at the end of Manchester City’s supremacy?
Danny Jones
Pep Guardiola looks to have suggested that more than a decade of Manchester City’s supremacy and Premier League dominance at the very least might be coming to an end.
Speaking in his post-match press interviews after City were knocked out of the Champions League by serial European Cup winners Real Madrid, Guardiola cut a somewhat more deflated figure than usual following the 3-1 defeat.
A Kylian Mbappe hattrick which was closed out within an hour of play was enough to stretch the aggregate score to 6-3 over the two legs and Madrid doubling their lead across the tie proved yet again why, not unlike City domestically over the last decade, they’re the kings of the continental competition.
In contrast, however, Pep seemed to accept the loss much more easily than perhaps we’ve seen in the past and rather than appearing familiarly frustrated or defiant in the press conference; instead, he seemed rather reflective, responding to one reporter: “Nothing is eternal”.
🗣️ "Nothing is eternal" – Pep Guardiola.
🔵 Subscribe to our Manchester City page on BBC Sounds for the latest interviews. #MCFC#bbcfootball
Insisting that they have to decide whether a significant rebuild is needed to keep competing at the very top level consistently as they have done since the 54-year-old arrived back in 2016, he argued that it is only with that they’ll be able to determine what comes next.
As for the result itself, he made no bones about Carlo Ancelotti’s side having “deserved it”, stating simply that “the best team won” and that fans and players alike have to “accept the reality: they were better.”
Having been a familiar foe for Pep long before he arrived in Manchester, both at Barcelona and Bayern Munich – not to mention City having faced Los Blancos a dozen times before Tuesday night since 2012 – there have been less surprising outcomes for supporters to come to terms with.
“With time, the club and everyone is going to accept what it is but for now we have 30/40 games for the Premier League next season to try and be here [in the Champions League] and to improve. Nothing is eternal”, said the Catalan coaching genius.
On the other hand, he also went on to add that it was merely a reflection on the night itself and not what his team have achieved in recent years.
He went on to remark that “when we were playing outstanding it hurt more” to be knocked out of the UCL when he felt they deserved to stay in it, but still insisted: “We have been unbelievable and we have to try step by step to get better from today.” Tonight just wasn’t the night.
Who knows? Perhaps it was just some more melodrama from a manager with an undeniable flare for pageantry and playing into/in the face of narratives when he doesn’t come out on top – which hasn’t happened all that often until their dip in form this season.
Plus, there’s certainly still plenty for him and the fans to be positive about; not only has the arrival of their ‘Egyptian Prince’ and the media’s Mo Salah successor, Omar Marmoush, got plenty of people excited – especially after that first-half hattrick against Newcastle – but so too have the other January signings.
In fact, for all of his downplaying in this particular presser (which you can hear in full HERE), it felt like there were only upsides after their victory over Newcastle, even going so far as to dub new signing Nico Gonzalez a ‘mini-Rodri‘.
You can watch the highlights from the game down below:
Pep is right, nothing is eternal – but sometimes you just come up against talents like Mbappe and there’s very little anyone can do about it.
Sale Sharks sign highly-rated Harlequins hooker, Nathan Jibulu
Danny Jones
Sale Sharks are investing in youth with their latest bit of transfer business after signing one of the Harlequins’ hottest prospects, Nathan Jibulu.
The highly-rated hooker, who has already nine appearances this season, including more than half a dozen in the Gallagher Premiership, has been exciting plenty of scouts throughout rugby union and is already firmly in national team plans.
Having already been part of the England Under-20 and A squads, not to mention impressing at club level in a relatively short space of time, it’s a big coup for Sale.
From the Quins academy to the right side of Shark-infested waters.
Jibulu joined the Twickenham-based outfit back in 2022 just a year after they won their second English championship (a full decade since their first) after previously attending Seaford College and representing nearby Wimbledon Warriors.
However, now the six-foot and seriously strong forward will be swapping the life near the capital for the North and Greater Manchester, specifically.
Set to join Sale Sharks for the 2025/26 season – scheduled to kick off in September – he’s looking like a really strong addition to their front row and a future squads to come.
Speaking to the club in an official statement, he said: “When I was younger, whenever someone asked me, ‘what team would you want to play for?’ I’d always say Sale…
“I’ve scrummed a lot with Asher [Opoku-Fordjour] and I got to know him pretty well. I always tell him how special and different he is, and I can’t wait to play with him.
“The way the club has developed him and nurtured him to become an established Premiership and England player speaks volumes about the coaching and the support that he’s getting at Sale.
“The entire front row is in the England squad, with the Curry boys too, so that tells you that someone at the club is doing something right. I looked at that and I said, ‘why would you not want to be there?’”
Still just 22 years old and having made just as many appearances for his soon-to-be former club, Sale weren’t the only ones chasing his signature.
Jibulu went on to add: “I love those games where you go toe-to-toe physically, so all of that attracted me straight away, and then speaking to people who are there already, they said all the stuff that I really like so it was a no brainer when the opportunity came about.”
As for his impending coach, Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson said: “Nathan is really driven, he understands what he wants from his life and his career, and he knows how he’s going to get it.
“He’s a young lad but he’s incredibly mature and he’s got the game and the physical attributes to match. I’ve got no doubt he’ll play for England in the future and we’re really excited to bring him to the club.”
Currently sat seventh in the table after another at times promising but somewhat frustrating start to the year, the summer can’t come soon enough for Sale.
Danny Jones -
1st August 2023 
