Tourism body Welcome to Yorkshire has confirmed that next year's Tour de Yorkshire cycling race will not be going ahead.
Skipton was due to be one of the host towns for the event, with Craven District Council pledging £100,000 from its budget towards the costs.
But organisers now say 'escalating financial challenges and uncertainties' - as well as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic - mean that the 2022 event would be unviable.
There was no Tour de Yorkshire this year or last year because of the pandemic, but it was an annual race between 2015 and 2019, following on from the success of and excitement around the 2014 Tour de France Grand Depart in Yorkshire.
Welcome to Yorkshire Chief Executive James Mason said: “This has been an intense period of back and forth discussions about the 2022 Tour de Yorkshire over many months. The race is a much-loved international sports event which showcases Yorkshire across the globe. So many people involved in the decision making process understand just how popular the race is. We had every intention for the race to go ahead but unfortunately some of the circumstances were out of our control and sometimes you have to make big calls for the right reasons. People from Yorkshire are proud and we only want the best for the county. We still have ambitions for large events going forward to put Yorkshire on the world stage and we will continue to work with our partners to plan for those.”
Chair of Welcome to Yorkshire Peter Box said: “Whilst the news about the Tour de Yorkshire will be disappointing to hear for many, it’s important for Welcome to Yorkshire to now focus on imminent events and to continue planning for future annual campaigns, similar to 2021’s acclaimed ‘Walkshire’, promoting the whole of the county every day of the year. The last eighteen months have seen turbulent times for many businesses and for tourism, with financial restrictions which must be addressed and considered in all decision-making processes. The ongoing support of Welcome to Yorkshire’s partners across the county is gratefully acknowledged and we look forward to continuing working together going forward. The organisation has shown immense creativity, skill and expertise at arranging and hosting a wide-range of award-winning events in the past and it will continue to do so.”
