Wales will host a new UCI-sanctioned race and closed-road sportive for up to 10,000 riders in 2015.

The inaugural Velothon Wales, which will follow a similar format to the Prudential RideLondon, will be held on Sunday June 14, 2015, starting and finishing in Cardiff, and giving sportive riders the chance to ride the same roads (with 50km and 120km courses available) as the pro peloton.

The official UCI grading of the Velothon Wales pro race will not be announced until the 2015 UCI calendar is confirmed in late September, however the event’s organisers have indicated the course will be identical to that of the 120km sportive, but with multiple loops of the Tumble climb in Brecon Beacons – set to feature on stage nine of this year’s Tour of Britain – and Caerphilly Mountain to increase the amount of climbing and distance.

The event is part of the Velothon series, which already includes rides in Berlin, which RoadCyclingUK’s George Scott tackled in May, Philadelphia and Vienna. RoadCyclingUK readers can pre-register for Velothon Wales now and receive 20 per cent off entry (priced at £55 for the 120km route and £40 for the 50km course) during a priority booking window by using the code RCUK.

Jonny Clay, cycle sport and membership director for British Cycling, said: “We have been working closely with the organisers of Velothon Wales for over a year now and we are very excited with how the project has developed.

“Bringing together elite level road racing with mass participation events has proved to be a very exciting and successful method for staging major events in recent years and I’m confident that we will have thousands of people eager to take part, either as participants or spectators. When you add in the natural landscape of Wales and the vibrancy of the city of Cardiff, there is no doubt that Velothon Wales will be memorable event, not only for 2014, but for many years to come.”

Velothon Wales race director Roland Hofer added: “Having worked as race director for Velothon Berlin since 2009, I am hugely excited to be part of the team that will be delivering Velothon Wales.

“Each year Velothon Berlin [won by Andre Greipel in 2012 and Marcel Kittel in 2013] attracts a stellar elite field which, combined with thousands of participants taking on the exact same route, creates a truly memorable day of cycling. We are looking forward to Velothon Wales emulating its success in every respect.”

For more information and to pre-register, visit www.velothon-wales.co.uk