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Welcome to the third of our five-month series of articles supporting you in your training and preparation for the 2018 Etape du Tour. Introduction Welcome to Spring; the weather has finally improved a bit, we’ve had one hot spell which definitely saw all of us getting out on our bikes.  We have been training for 2/3 months now and at this point it’s not uncommon to have a dip in motivation as the Etape is still some way off (especially since the weather has been rubbish – apart from one weekend!).  But we need to maintain a healthy level of fear of the forthcoming challenge so this month the training goes up another notch.  Until now we’ve been laying a solid foundation to build upon, but now the sessions are becoming even more structured and focused with alternate sessions changing each week.  Mid week you might be able to get out on the roads, but otherwise turbo sets are still on offer.   In May you might be going on a training camp and riding one or two build up sportive events,

The biggest events of the worldwide Marathon calendar are those that make up a series called the Abbott World Marathon Majors. These include in date order: Tokyo Marathon, Virgin Money London Marathon, The Boston Marathon, Berlin Marathon, Chicago Marathon and the New York City Marathon. With the rise in popularity of running worldwide, the most popular international running events are getting increasingly difficult to get an entry into. The 6 World Marathon Majors are not the only sold out events that we offer guaranteed entry into. For an overview of other sell out Half Marathons and Marathons, have a look here. In general there are a few set ways in which you can get hold of an entry into one of the World Marathon Majors which are: Running really fast.  A lot of events have a ‘ Good for Age ‘ programme which means that if you run below the time limit for your age then you gain direct entry into the event. Qualifying times and entry fees are different for every event The ballot

The Christie charity provides enhanced services over and above what the NHS funds to help people suffering with Cancer. Gifts from the public make a huge difference to the care and treatment that The Christie is able to provide to their patients and their families. We are delighted to announce that The Christie are again an Official Charity Partner for the UKFast City of Salford 10k. Aislinn Walsh, Sporting Events Fundraising Co-Ordinator at The Christie commented: “We are delighted to once again be one of the official charity partners for the 2018 UKFast City of Salford 10k and are excited to be part of this event for the third year running. We look forward to welcoming as many runners as possible to join Team Christie and through their fundraising, helping to make The Christie the exceptional place it is for our cancer patients and their families.” Last year, participants taking part in the UKFast City of Salford 10k raised £20,790.00 for the Christie Charity. Donations like thes

There is a massive choice of Cyclosportives these days, both in the UK, in Europe and further afield. In our minds here at Sports Tours International there are 3 Cyclosportives that every serious cyclist should have done at least once. Read below when they are and what makes them great. The Etape du Tour When:  Sunday 8 July, 2018 Where:  From Annecy to Le Grand Bornand, French Alps Field:  15000 riders Distance:  169km Ascent:  4200m Climbs:  Plateau des Glieres, Col de la Colombiere, Col de Romme Accessibility:  Fly into Geneva or drive Entry availability:  Entries are already sold out on the Etape du Tour website. Guaranteed entries with Sports Tours International What’s so special about it?:  This is your chance to ride a stage of the Tour de France, the greatest cycle race in the world. Every year you have the opportunity to test yourself against the riders of the pro Peloton on the exact same course on closed roads. The stage which is chosen usually alternates between a

The Commonwealth Games have been a fascinating event this year and they’ve been packed with lots of success stories from all of the Home Nations. We catch up with our Ambassador and Double Olympic Champion, Joanna Rowsell Shand who since retiring from professional cycling has taken to the punditry studio. Joanna has spent the last few weeks working for the BBC covering the Commonwealth Games. It has officially been over a year since I announced my retirement from the GB Cycling Team and what a year it’s been! I’ve tried to set myself some varied challenges during that time such as completing the epic Etape du Tour in July last year finishing up the Col d’Izoard as well as starting a degree at Manchester Met Uni in September. Another activity I’ve enjoyed since retiring has been working with the media for cycling coverage of major events. One of the most common questions I’ve been asked since retiring is do I miss competing? In general I don’t miss it at all as I know the reality o

  Today we are very proud to have confirmed that Salford based triathlete, Rhianna Parkinson will be joining our team as our newest Community Ambassador. Rhianna is truly inspirational as an athlete and as a person she has worked very hard in the last three years to turn her sporting her life around, she has gone from the couch to competing at the triathlon world championships. Rhianna joins professional boxer Stacey Copeland as a Community Ambassador for Sports Tours International and she will be supporting a number of UK events and posting regular blogs sharing her experiences and training tips with customers. Commenting on her new role, Rhianna said:  “I’m really looking forward to working with Sports Tours International; they are a company who are actively focused on getting more people involved in sport and that’s something I’m passionate about.” Just months away from competing in the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in South Africa, it’s difficult to tell that only three

We are delighted to confirm an extended deal with professional timing company TDL Event Services. TDL Event Services was setup in 2007 and has grown steadily to support some of the largest sporting events in the UK and Ireland, providing official chip timing for over 300,000 participants annually. Kevin Harmer, UK Events & Sponsorship Manager said; “Sports Tours International is delighted to be working with Tom and the team at TDL as this relationship has developed extremely well over a number of years now. Our UK running event portfolio is growing again in 2018 with the addition of the City of Preston 10k and to have TDL Event Services on board for all of our events – it gives us and our customers the consistency of great service that we and our runners expect”. Tom Last, Managing Director of TDL Event Services said; “We are thrilled to be continuing our longstanding partnership with Sport Tours International, providing timing and event services for such iconic events as th