It means the Tour is now considered to be on a par with races like the Tour of California, the Tour of Turkey and the Criterium International.

The status is called 2.HC – the two signals it is a multi-stage race, with the HC meaning "beyond categorisation".

British Cycling's Cycle Sport and Membership director, Jonny Clay, said: "We're delighted that the Tour of Britain has attained a place alongside some of the most historic races on the global cycling calendar.

"This is a well-deserved recognition of the status of the sport in Britain and of the work that British Cycling has done to put Great Britain amongst the top cycling nations in the world.

"Credit must be given to SweetSpot for their stewardship of the race to date and we look forward to working with them over the next five years to continue the growth of the event as both a monument of the sport and as a British sporting success."

Britain's Bradley Wiggins will hope to defend his Tour of Britain crown in September ©Getty Images



The eight-day Tour of Britain will take place from September 7 to 14, with the route to be announced in the spring.

SweetSpot race director Mick Bennett said: "We are delighted by today's announcement, which comes as a culmination of 10 year's hard work by the SweetSpot team.

"The award of 2.HC status is another step forward for the Tour of Britain, and we look forward to this September's edition of the race being the best yet.

"The upgrade is also a reward for the many hundreds of thousands of spectators who have lined the route and cheered on the race over the past decade."

Last year's Tour was won by Britain's Bradley Wiggins, who was victor of the Tour de France in 2012.