The Tour of Britain has today launched its national land art competition for the 2022 race, with the search on to find the successor to last year’s winner, Craskins Farm in Aberdeenshire.
Community groups, schools, businesses and land owners along the route are being encouraged to take part in the competition during the eight stages of the race (Sunday 4 - 11 September).
The winning entry will be decided after the race by a panel comprising race director Mick Bennett, members of the ITV4 broadcast team and staff from race organisers SweetSpot. The winners will be presented with a trophy; two runners-up will also be announced.
Commenting on the launch of the competition, Tour of Britain Race Director Mick Bennett said, “The land art competition always brings out the creativity in the communities that we pass through. The entries never cease to bring a smile to our faces, and I am sure that of viewers around the world watching on TV.
“Over the past three editions we have had some wonderful entries to the competition and I am sure that the standard will be equally high this year.”
The tradition of creating land art masterpieces along the route has long been the practice at the Tour of Britain, as well as other cycle races around the world. The Tour of Britain has organised a competition to select the best piece of artwork at every edition since 2018.
Previous winners include farmers in South Molton, Devon (2018) and Egerton Park and Walmsley Primary School, Greater Manchester (2019), while the 2021 competition was won by Dr Jenna Ross OBE of Craskins Farm in Aberdeenshire.
Full details of the Tour of Britain land art competition including on how to enter can be found on the race website at The Tour of Britain | Land Art Competition.
The 2022 race starts in Aberdeen city centre and finishes eight days later on the Isle of Wight. Along the way riders will tackle stages in the Scottish Borders, North East England, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Gloucestershire and Dorset.
ITV4 will continue to broadcast live flag-to-flag coverage of every stage and nightly highlights show, allowing fans in the UK to watch wherever they are. The race will also be shown in over 150 countries worldwide, thanks to the event's partnerships with Eurosport and the Global Cycling Network.
Last year's star-studded race was won by Belgian rider Wout Van Aert (Team Jumbo – Visma), with reigning world road race champion Julian Alaphilippe finishing third overall. According to research by Frontline, a roadside crowd of over one million spectators resulted in the Tour of Britain generating £29.96m of net economic benefit for the UK economy.