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Prudential announced as sponsor of RideLondon Olympic legacy event as route unveiled

Leith Hill is the new Box Hill as routes for RideLondon Classic and RideLondon 100 announced

Insurance company Prudential has been announced as the sponsor of the RideLondon Olympic legacy event to be held this August, which will involve 70,000 cyclists ranging from families to some of the world's top pros taking to the roads of London and Surrey. The routes of the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic pro race and the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 amateur event have also been announced this morning - you can download the map at the end of this article.

Those two events take in some of the routes of the Olympic road races last Summer such as Richmond Park and Box Hill, although there are key differences, including the fact that the way out of and back into the centre London is a loop, rather than along the same roads.

For the pro race, there’s no Box Hill circuit, but prior to taking on that ascent once they will tackle the area’s other tough climb, Leith Hill, three times.

The Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 follows a similar route, although the way out from the start at what was the Olympic Park is different, and that Leith Hill loop is only ridden once. With an entry system similar to that employed by the London Marathon, some 55,000 people have registered their interest for the 20,000 places available.

Organisers say that applicants will learn from today whether they have secured a place, and point out that as happens in the London Marathon, some spots have been held back for charities to distribute to fundraisers.

“Following the superhuman efforts of our Team GB cyclists last year, thousands of cycling enthusiasts, both experienced and amateur, riding a fantastic route through the streets of our fine city is surely a fitting legacy,” said Mr Johnson.

“I am delighted that six months on from Laura Trott’s breathtaking gold in the Omnium we are in a position to announce the routes and title sponsor.

"Prudential RideLondon is sure to become one of the world’s top cycling events, the countdown to the start of the event begins now!”

Prudential, which in 1998 and 1999 sponsored the Tour of Britain under the name the PruTour, has committed to sponsor the event for three years and group chief executive Tidjane Thiam commented: “The 2012 Games reaffirmed London’s leading position on the world stage.

“Today, following on this historic success for our capital city, Prudential is announcing a long-term partnership with RideLondon.

“I am confident that this exciting, annual event will become both a global showcase for London and a leading mass-participation sporting festival, promoting the values of healthy, active lifestyles for people of all ages throughout Britain.”

The event is being organised by London and Surrey Cycling Partnership, a joint venture between SweetSpot, organisers of the Tour of Britain and the Tour Series, and the company behind the London Marathon.

Hugh Brasher, a director of the joint venture said: “The double announcement of Prudential as title sponsors of the weekend, plus the routes for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 and Classic events, is a real milestone.

“The challenge for the successful entrants is to get to the start line fit and ready to cycle 100 miles within the nine hour cut-off. Our challenge is to ensure that we deliver a world-class event that inspires the next Laura Trott and delivers on its four-year goal to become the largest fundraising charity cycle ride in the world.”

According to organisers, the full programme for the weekend is:

The Prudential RideLondon–Surrey 100 to be held on Sunday 4 August. Open to amateur and club riders, this 100-mile event attracted over 55,000 registrants who will find out from today if they have been successful in securing a place. Those that haven’t may still be able to take part through one of the many charities with guaranteed entries, or teams of four (men, women or mixed) from the same organisation can enter the Business Relay, where each team member will ride around 25 miles. Details of charity places and the Business Relay are on the Prudential RideLondon website at www.PrudentialRideLondon.co.uk

The Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic for elite men’s professional riders brings the drama of a classic one-day style of racing back to Britain for the first time in 16 years. To be held on Sunday 4 August, the 140 mile route includes all the highlights of the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 route plus the testing challenge of three ascents of Leith Hill, the highest point in Surrey and even steeper than Box Hill.

The Prudential RideLondon Grand Prix to be held on Saturday 3 August, which will feature the world’s best women, junior and hand cyclists in action on a circuit in and around St James’s Park.

The Prudential RideLondon Freecycle to be held on Saturday 3 August. This eight-mile mass-participation ride is free to enter and open to cyclists of all ages and abilities. It aims to encourage anyone inspired by the London 2012 Games to take up cycling as part of an active and healthy lifestyle. Register now at www.PrudentialRideLondon.co.uk  It’s free!

Highlights of the entire festival as well as live coverage of the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic will be shown on BBC TV.
 

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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20 comments

Avatar
doc | 11 years ago
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Good that Pru have come back in again, after the PruTour business, when they did a fair bit and suggested a decent contract length, then disappeared after two years. So let's hope this time the deal is watertight.
The PR is a bit misleading "gringing back one-day classic racing" to the UK, there is this little race up in the East Midlands called Cicle Classic (Rutland-Melton) which has been going for quite a few years!
Still, good to have another one in the mix.

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cidermart | 11 years ago
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It's a big fat no from me  2 Have fun people.

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mattm | 11 years ago
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I am in and made it in to the Fred Whitton, must by lucky year

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richred_uk | 11 years ago
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 2

Not in

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Timsen | 11 years ago
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I'm not in !

Good luck cycling through all those that get off to walk at the first hill .......if there is one in Surrey !! (sour grapes on my part I realise !)

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jollygoodvelo | 11 years ago
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Just in case people haven't realised: you can find out instantly if you're in by going to the 'Ballot' page and trying to pay. If your email address and password lets you in but it says 'Cancelled', you're unlucky.

I'm in  4

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pwake replied to jollygoodvelo | 11 years ago
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Gizmo_ wrote:

Just in case people haven't realised: you can find out instantly if you're in by going to the 'Ballot' page and trying to pay. If your email address and password lets you in but it says 'Cancelled', you're unlucky.

I'm in  4

Thanks for that info.
Both myself and my wife are in  1
Now have to figure out the logistics of travelling all the way from Texas; wonder if Lance's private jet is available, don't suppose he's using it too much nowadays...

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Timsen | 11 years ago
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I wonder how they are allocating these places & what significance will be placed on your credentials as a serious roadie !

We will hear from today..... I haven't heard & if I'm honest I'm not too surprised having not got any tickets for that Olympic malarkey last year.

I'm becoming a bit cynical about the whole sportive scene having also lost out in the ballot for the Dragon Ride which I have ridden 3 times. Still..... there are better things to do on a bike like joining a club & supporting local races where you don't have to pay hugely for the privilege of riding on public roads, travel miles to an early start, wait in long queues to start & take your chances on there being any food at the feed stops etc etc.....

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Al__S replied to Timsen | 11 years ago
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Pretty sure the conditions of entry to the ballot indicated it was a random draw.

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doc replied to Timsen | 11 years ago
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Timsen wrote:

I wonder how they are allocating these places & what significance will be placed on your credentials as a serious roadie !

We will hear from today..... I haven't heard & if I'm honest I'm not too surprised having not got any tickets for that Olympic malarkey last year.

I'm becoming a bit cynical about the whole sportive scene having also lost out in the ballot for the Dragon Ride which I have ridden 3 times. Still..... there are better things to do on a bike like joining a club & supporting local races where you don't have to pay hugely for the privilege of riding on public roads, travel miles to an early start, wait in long queues to start & take your chances on there being any food at the feed stops etc etc.....

By "local races" do you mean RACES or sportives? Because there's a difference. Quite a few confuse this, a sportive is not a race, as much as some would like to think so. But if you really are going to race, you won't find food stops!

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ubercurmudgeon | 11 years ago
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How many cyclists or pedestrians has Prudential tried to reduce payouts to, by claiming contributory negligence due to their clothing or headwear choices, I wonder? I'd like to think the organisers of RideLondon checked such things first, but having had some experience of the kind of PR people who arrange such sponsorship deals, whose morals are rarely any higher than insurance people, I doubt it.

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CraigS replied to ubercurmudgeon | 11 years ago
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ubercurmudgeon wrote:

How many cyclists or pedestrians has Prudential tried to reduce payouts to, by claiming contributory negligence due to their clothing or headwear choices, I wonder? I'd like to think the organisers of RideLondon checked such things first, but having had some experience of the kind of PR people who arrange such sponsorship deals, whose morals are rarely any higher than insurance people, I doubt it.

You've got your insurance mixed up. Prudential do life insurance and pensions. They either pay out a specified amount when you die or get sick or they pay you a regular amount until you die.

Very different from liability type insurance (like car insurance) where a 3rd party is effectively claiming damages and those damages can be argued up or down in monetary terms.

In fact, with some of their products they promote healthy living by reducing your premiums and giving you benefits like reduced gym membership.

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ubercurmudgeon replied to CraigS | 11 years ago
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CraigS wrote:

You've got your insurance mixed up. Prudential do life insurance and pensions.

...and car insurance: http://www.pru.co.uk/insurance_protection/car_insurance/

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CraigS replied to ubercurmudgeon | 11 years ago
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ubercurmudgeon wrote:
CraigS wrote:

You've got your insurance mixed up. Prudential do life insurance and pensions.

...and car insurance: http://www.pru.co.uk/insurance_protection/car_insurance/

Nope. It's underwritten by UK Insurance Limited, part of Direct Line, Pru are just salespeople for it. Same as when you buy insurance through a supermarket.

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Simon_MacMichael | 11 years ago
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Cheers Gizmo

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jollygoodvelo | 11 years ago
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Oh - minor correction to the article: given the direction of travel it will be Leith Hill three times then Box Hill.

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jollygoodvelo | 11 years ago
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If you compare the PDF route to an actual map it's pretty obvious where it will go... I've mapped it here: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2126060

Leith Hill @95km is the steepest point and all of the climbs worth the name are between the 79km and 119km point - from Headley Heath back to London it's 40km essentially flat.

Now, crossing my fingers I've got a place!

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a.jumper | 11 years ago
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Shame to lose the Richmond double-viewing point. Is Kingston ready for the extra crowds?

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northstar | 11 years ago
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Could they be anymore vague on some parts of the route...

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CraigS | 11 years ago
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Can't wait to ride it, although it is pretty much a warm up for Etape Cymru the following month!

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