Thursday 4 August 2016 09:46, UK
The Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic will become the first British event to join the top series of men's professional road cycling after the International Cycling Union announced the 2017 UCI WorldTour calendar.
The UCI added 10 new events to its men's WorldTour calendar for the 2017 season, expanding the series to include the British one-day RideLondon-Surrey Classic as well as the first American men's WorldTour event, the Amgen Tour of California.
The new calendar will take the peloton to 15 countries and consist of 37 events - three Grand Tours, 14 other stage races and 20 one-day events.
The UCI president, Brian Cookson, believes the addition of the new races across the globe adds a different dimension to the UCI WorldTour season, which now travels to Asia, Oceania, Europe, the Middle East and North America.
"The publication of this new calendar is an important step in the development of men's professional road cycling," Cookson said.
"Alongside the prestigious events which have already proven their worth, the UCI WorldTour is enriched by the addition of some truly fantastic races across the globe. I'm delighted to see this development."
The WorldTour will continue to begin in January with the Santos Tour Down Under in Austalia and conclude with Il Lombardia in Italy at the end of September.
