An elite level British Cycling event will attract thousands of visitors to Dudley and boost town centre businesses, the leader of the council said today.

Councillor Patrick Harley met with representatives from British Cycling and Stourbridge Cycling Club to officially launch the event.

The Dudley Grand Prix circuit race event will be held in the town on July 14 to coincide with Black Country Day celebrations taking place in the borough.

The event, which is part of the men’s and women’s national circuit series, is expected to attract famous names from the world of cycling including British Olympic champions. It comes after people lined the streets in Dudley and Sedgley last year to enjoy time trial events for the Commonwealth Games. Councillor Harley said:

"This is a really exciting opportunity for Dudley. We’re thrilled to be hosting elite sports again in the borough on the back of the success of last year’s Commonwealth Games cycling time trials.

"We saw then that people really came out in force locally and I expect they will do the same again. Also, with this event being a fixture on the British Cycling calendar, I expect fans to travel in from outside the borough to watch it as well.

"The extra footfall that elite sporting events brings can only be good for our town centre businesses. It will also help raise the profile even further of Black Country Day. It will be a key event as part of our celebrations throughout the month of July to celebrate the culture and heritage of our area.

"While full details of the event are yet to be finalised, it is expected to run from late afternoon and will offer local people the chance to get involved on their bikes before the elite racing takes centre stage."

Members of Stourbridge Cycling Club have worked with British Cycling, Dudley Council and Generation Pro Cycle Events to help put the borough on the map and secure its place in the circuit series calendar.

Lee Wood of Stourbridge Cycling Club, added: "It’s been great to meet up with everyone to formally launch this exciting event.

Being born and bred in Dudley, I was thrilled with last year’s Commonwealth Games and wanted to put something on to build on that success. I’m so pleased with the support from British Cycling and Dudley Council we’ve been able to turn our dream into a reality.

"We’re now really looking forward to supporting on the event planning and making it a huge success."

The circuit will run on roads around town centre on a route which will total just over one kilometre. It will be designed to minimise disruption to the road network.

For further details on the event, you can visit dudleygrandprix.com.