The prize money for the UCI women’s WorldTour event at Prudential RideLondon will match that promised for the men’s race the following day, marking a landmark moment for the sport.
The new RideLondon Classique has a prize pool of €100,000 each for the men’s and women’s races, and becomes the highest ever offered for a women’s one-day race. The women’s race will be held on Saturday 30 July, with the men’s race following on Sunday 31 July. Both will be televised live by BBC Sport.
“Prudential RideLondon has set new records for cycling every year,” said Brian Cookson, the president of governing body the UCI. “It is the biggest festival of cycling in the world and it is wonderful to see that the new UCI Women’s WorldTour race has been awarded full parity with the men’s event.”
Breakdown of the prize money
Marianne Vos (far left), Lizzie Armitstead (centre) and Laura Trott line up for the 2014 RideLondon Grand Prix Pro
The individual winner of the RideLondon Classique will win €25,000, and the winning team will be awarded €10,000. There will be three Continental sprint classifications in the race, offering a further €12,600 in prize money. There is a full breakdown of the prize money here.
“This is fantastic news,” said double Olympic champion Laura Trott. Women’s cycling is being given the recognition it deserves. Prudential RideLondon has pioneered incredible change in women’s cycling, first with live television coverage, then live cameras on bikes last year and now with record prize money and parity with the men’s race.”
This follows the news that the organisers of this year's Tour de Yorkshire will offer the women more prize money than the men. Thanks to a three-year deal with supermarket chain Asda, the first prize for the women's three-day Tour de Yorkshire will be €20,000, compared to €14,000 for the men's race.
Race route
Lizzie Armitstead (left) and Laura Trott chat ahead of the 2014 RideLondon Grand Prix Pro
The RideLondon Classique was awarded UCI WorldTour status for 2016 by the UCI, and will take place on a spectacular 5.5km circuit in central London. It will begin on The Mall in St James’s Park, going up Constitution Hill, turning at the top to come down and on to Birdcage Walk, then passing Big Ben and turning left on to Whitehall and right on to the Strand before turning again to come back up the Strand, through Trafalgar Square, Admiralty Arch and back on to The Mall.
Both races are part of RideLondon, the world’s biggest festival of cycling, with more than 100,000 riders expected to take part in events over the weekend of 30-31 July 2016. Look out for a BikeRadar rider competing in the Brompton World Championship, which takes part during RideLondon on July 30.
Do you think we'll see more top-flight women's races getting equal prize money to the men? Let us know in the comments below.