June 25, 2004 – This September’s Tour of Britain will have a truly global feel about it as the latest teams to sign up for this long-awaited event are based in Italy and the USA respectively. Panaria-Margres from Italy and The Navigators Insurance Cycling Team from the USA join Credit Agricole from France, Chocolade Jacques Wincor-Nixdorf, Lotto-Domo and Mr. Bookmaker.com-Palmans from Belgium on the starting line-up in Manchester for the first stage on September 1st.

The Panaria-Margres team produced a surprise this year at the Giro d’Italia when young Emanuele Sella won the 11th stage and his other team members also possess enough experience and ability to make a mark in this year’s Tour of Britain. Australian Graeme Brown is a former Commonwealth Games Team Pursuit Gold Medal winner, is a stage winner of the Tour Down Under and has impressed on the Tour de Langkawi. His compatriot Brett Lancaster took the honours in the Team Pursuit in the Sydney Games and is also a stage winner in Langkawi. Also look out for Italian Giuliano Figueras who won the prestigious Coppi-Bartoli event in Riccione in March and looked certain to finish in the top four in the Giro d’Italia if he had not been laid low by illness.

The Navigators are based in the USA where cycling is undergoing a new wave of popularity. They would love to see the Americans in the team like Marty Nothstein, Kirk O’Bee and Jeff Louder do well on the road and they also have Irishman Ciaran Power, a former Olympian in 2000, to lend his experience.

Two Australian riders are important members of the team. Henk Vogels has won national races in the USA and Australia and has ample experience riding in the European Classics but a major injury has stalled his progress. David McKenzie is a powerful sprinter with race victories on four continents. A former stage winner of the Giro d’Italia, he has impressed this year in races in the USA and Australia.

The Tour of Britain has been granted elite status (Category 2.3 ) by the UCI. It will feature twelve commercially sponsored teams and four national teams from the UK and take in stages which start in Manchester and visit the North-West of England on day one. Stage Two will be based in Yorkshire and Stage Three will visit cities in the East Midlands. The Fourth Stage takes the riders to South-East Wales and Gwent with the thrilling climax taking place on Sunday with a criterium, a race on a specially designed circuit which takes in the streets of Westminster.

BBC TV are committed to televising the Tour both through their regional networks and in an eighty minute programme, featuring all five stages, which will be broadcast in their flagship sports program, Grandstand. A similar program will be made for global distribution.

British Cycling President Brian Cookson said: “This is more great news from the Tour of Britain organisers. Things are really coming together very well for this exciting event, and I am confident that it will give a real boost to our sport.”