West Oxfordshire District Council is running a competition for young people aged 5-11 to win VIP access for themselves and their families to the start of stage 6 of the Women’s Tour. The winners will be able to wave their flags to start the race in Chipping Norton, as well as receiving signed Tour t-shirts.
To enter the contest, children will need to design and submit a starting flag, using a template that can be downloaded via the link below. Flags should feature some of the local landmarks that cyclists will pass during the stage in West Oxfordshire or relate to cycling in some way. The winning designs will be made into flags that winners will wave to officially start the final stage on Saturday 11 June.
It’s an exciting prize for any young cycling enthusiasts and primary schools are being encouraged to involve their students in creating entries. As Giles Hughes, Chief Executive of the District Council explains, “This is a unique opportunity for children to take part in this special occasion by designing the flag which kicks off the final day of racing. The flag design will be seen worldwide by television audiences, as well as the many thousands of people who will visit the District to see the start of the race in Chipping Norton.”
Katie Scott, who made her debut on the Tour last year, is from Faringdon and will be one of the judges of the flag competition. She described riding the Women’s Tour last year on home roads as “one of the highlights of my racing career so far, so it’s brilliant to see the race is back in the region again. The support we received from the roadside was something else. I love that the local community gets so involved and this competition is a brilliant and fun way for children here to get creative!”
Entries from would-be flag wavers aged 5-11 must be submitted by midday on Friday 27 May and should be created on a A4 piece of paper. The designs should be emailed (either the original as an attachment or a photo of the design) to womens.tour@westoxon.gov.uk along with the entrants’ name and age. More details on the contest and the route are available on the Women’s Tour website.
Good luck to everyone who enters! We’d love to hear from you if your entry is picked and you get to wave your flag at the start of the stage. Email the council on epc.comms@eynsham-pc.gov.uk.