Tour de Yorkshire 2017: Race will start in Bridlington and finish in Sheffield

The 2017 Tour de Yorkshire will start in Bridlington and finish two days later in Sheffield on Sunday, 30 April.

The race begins with a 173km stage to Scarborough on Friday, 28 April.

Stage two see riders start in Tadcaster and go 122.5km to Harrogate, before ending with a 194.5km stage from Bradford to Fox Valley, Sheffield.

"I can't wait to see the world's best riders tackling these routes," said Sir Gary Verity, chief executive of race organisers Welcome to Yorkshire.

"We've worked hard to design a course which showcases Yorkshire's stunning scenery, as well as delivering a thrilling sporting event.

"Last year, the race attracted two million spectators and generated £60m for the local economy, and we'll go from strength to strength again next year."

The women's Tour de Yorkshire will be held on the same stage as the second stage of the men's event, with the women starting in the morning and the men in the afternoon.

This is the third edition of the event, won in 2016 by Frenchman Thomas Voeckler, which was started to extend the legacy of the county hosting the 2014 Grand Depart for the Tour de France.

Stage One: Bridlington to Scarborough (173km/107.5miles)

The third stage of this year's Tour de Yorkshire ended in Scarborough

The race will start outside Bridlington Spa and head into Pocklington for the first intermediate sprint.

There are classified climbs up the Côtes de Garrowby Hill and Goathland before the race hits the coastline again at Whitby for the second sprint of the day.

The route continues on to Robin Hood's Bay for the third and final climb and then into Scarborough for the finish along North Bay.

Stage Two: Tadcaster to Harrogate (122.5km/76 miles)

Starting on Tadcaster bridge, this stage takes the riders through some of Yorkshire's best known market towns.

They will venture into Knaresborough, where the first intermediate sprint points are up for grabs, and the day's sole categorised climb comes on the fearsome Côte de Lofthouse before the descent into Masham.

It is then on to Ripon for the second intermediate sprint and the race will skirt Fountains Abbey before a fast approach to Harrogate. The action finishes along Parliament Street, just as it did on the opening stage of the 2014 Tour de France.

Stage Three: Bradford to Fox Valley, Sheffield (194.5km/121 miles)

Frenchman Thomas Voeckler won the 2016 Tour de Yorkshire

In the toughest stage in the brief history of the Tour de Yorkshire, riders will start at Bradford City Park before heading into Saltaire.

The action briefly joins the 2014 Tour de France route at Burley-in-Wharfedale before passing Bolton Abbey and into the Yorkshire Dales. Skipton is the next town on the agenda, with the first of eight categorised climbs totalling more than 3,500m being contested on the Côte de Silsden.

The following ascent comes on the cobbled rise up Haworth's main street and another climb at Leeming must also be tackled before they face the challenging Côte de Shibden Wall.

This cobbled climb could see splits form before the intermediate sprint at Clifton. The race then moves from West to South Yorkshire and into Penistone, and another sprint is on the cards at Stocksbridge before the riders embark on a 22km finishing circuit that features four categorised climbs.

These come at Deepcar, Wigtwizzle, Ewden Height and Midhopestones before the race finishes at Fox Valley.