Mark Cavendish has said that the 2027 Tour de France Grand Départ in Great Britain – which will bring together stages in Scotland, England, and Wales – will be "bigger than you can even imagine" following ASO's official announcement on Wednesday.
The men's race is set to start in Edinburgh in two summers' time, marking the most northerly start to a Tour in history, with the latest visit to the UK following on from Grand Départs in London in 2007 and Yorkshire in 2014.
Route details beyond those broad sketches are thin on the ground, though more – on both the men's and women's races, which is also set to start in the UK – will be unveiled in the autumn.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday shortly before the announcement, Cavendish reflected on 2007 and 2014, having raced both editions, before proclaiming that 2027 will be even more special.
"I've done two British Grand Départs. My first ever Tour de France in London and for many years I've held it as the greatest Grand Départ any rider of our generation could remember," said Cavendish, who retired from racing at the end of last season.
"I remember not being able to stop and pee by the road because the crowds were four or five people deep the whole way from London to Canterbury. That was the greatest Grand Départ and then we went to Yorkshire and that was something else, wasn't it?
"I don't think we can comprehend what the start of the Tour de France is going to be like here. It’s going to be bigger than you can even imagine. It's really quite exciting."
Cavendish has been a major part of British cycling's 'golden age', encompassing his own record-breaking stage win tally at the Tour, six overall wins courtesy of Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, and Geraint Thomas, and a pile of Olympic medals across several cycling disciplines.
He, and those other bright British stars of the past two decades or so, may have already retired or be planning to soon. However, Cavendish said that the Tour can still inspire new generations of racers in the country.
"We’re very fortunate in this country that cycling has been this massive boon in the last 20 years," he said. "I think the success we’ve had as a nation has been part of that, but to be able to see not just the greatest bike race on Earth, but the greatest annual sporting event on Earth, here, it’s only going to inspire.
"I think anybody who sees a bike race pass of that magnitude, you can’t help but want to go out and ride your bike. I know my kids have got a bike rider – or an ex-bike rider – as a father, but whenever they see a bike race, the first thing they want to do when they get back home is ride their bikes."
