With the London start of the 2007 Tour de France only ten months away and the 2012 Olympic Games edging closer, the Tour of Britain is a key piece in the jigsaw that is likely to make cycling a leading sport across the country over the next five years.

The British race may not yet have the cachet of the Tour de France, but with the established European scene in crisis after a traumatic summer of doping scandals, the Tour of Britain is one of several shorter and less commercialised events that may prove to be more ethically sustainable than its gladiatorial cousins.

“We took the view that it would take the first three years to establish the foundation and sustainability of the race,” Hugh Roberts, the founder and chief executive of the Tour of Britain, said. “It has taken three years to build the brand, which is now recognisable across Europe.”

But there is a fly in the ointment at this year’s race. Roberts defended the inclusion of Floyd Landis’s Phonak team, who are in disarray after Andy Rhis, the owner, announced the disbanding of the team because of a string of doping scandals, including the most devastating one, involving the winner of the Tour de France. “Rescinding their invitation crossed our minds, but in the end we took the view that we’d allow them to take part,” Roberts said.

If Landis had not been caught up in the scandal, the American might have been on the start line in Glasgow. But his Phonak team-mates are racing and, for an event that promotes the health benefits of cycling, this would appear to be a mistake.

Roberts emphasised that the race champions “ethical causes” and sees the tour as a grassroots event. “I would like us to be seen as an organisation that makes sporting events more accessible,” he said. “The Tour of Britain can claim to be the largest live spectator event in the UK. It’s free and millions watch it live on the road and on TV.”

The key stage of this year’s race is likely to be the third, on Thursday, from Bradford to Sheffield, which traverses the Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District and includes several steep climbs. Among those hoping for overall success are Tom Boonen and Nick Nuyens, the Belgians, both of whom are members of the Quickstep team, and the T-Mobile team-mates, Andreas Kloden, of Germany, and Michael Rogers, of Australia.

But it is the London finale, incorporating sections of the 2007 Tour de France route and the 2012 Olympic road-racing course, which is most likely to fire the imagination. Significant road closures will be in place and large crowds are expected for an unprecedented festival of cycling in the capital.

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