Cycling:Tour de France organisers Amaury Sports Organisation has announced that the 2014 event will get underway in the English city of Leeds on July 5th.
The Grand Depart will return to Britain for the first time since 2007, when one million people lined the streets of London for the opening prologue.
ASO selected Yorkshire ahead of a separate British-wide bid with an Edinburgh start, but that remains in the running for a future date. The 100th edition of the Tour begins in Corsica on June 29th, 2013.
Leeds and then London will host the race before it heads for France, with full route details to be revealed next month.
A statement from ASO read: “The organisers of the Tour de France are pleased to announce that the Grand Depart of the Tour de France 2014 will take place in the United Kingdom in the county of Yorkshire, before heading to London for a stage finish.
“After an outstanding 2012 for British cycling, marked by the historical victory of Bradley Wiggins on the Tour de France, the United Kingdom will again hold pride of place in 2014.
“The Grand Depart of the 101st edition of the Tour will take place on July 5th in Leeds in the county of Yorkshire.
“Seven years after the Grand Depart of the Tour de France 2007 and two years after the latest Olympic Games, London will host the last stage on British soil, before the pack returns to mainland Europe.
“The details of this Grand Depart and the stages it will include will be revealed at a press conference that will take place on Thursday January 17, 2013, in two phases, in both Leeds and Paris.”