Dates confirmed for inaugural Dubai Tour

Organisers of the highly anticipated Dubai Tour have confirmed the four-day cycling race will take place between February 5th and 8th 2014.Dubai Sports Council (DSC) has joined forces with Italian firm RCS Sport to stage the competition and it will be the first event of its kind to be held in the UAE.Although the plans still need to be approved by the International Cycling Union, it is fair to assume that some of the world's finest cyclists will be competing in the Gulf next year.RCS Sport certainly has a fantastic pedigree when it comes to laying on prestigious races, as it is the brains behind the Giro d'Italia – cycling's second biggest race (after the Tour de France).Michele Acquarone – chief executive officer at the company – thanked the DSC for its support.”We are proud and pleased with the agreement reached with the DSC for organising the Dubai Tour. This milestone is in line with the strategy of RCS Sport to extend more and more its scope of operations into new international markets,” he remarked.Although it is the youngest race on the world circuit, Mr Acquarone is confident that it will quickly establish itself as the best in the region.   Cycling has become increasingly popular across the globe, with events like the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia attracting millions of TV viewers.This is the latest example of how Dubai is steadily attracting more and more world-class sporting events.The city is set to host part of the Fifa Under-17 World Cup in October and November 2013 and the emirate has also staged a leg of golf's European Tour.In addition to this, some of the world's finest tennis players head to the Gulf each year to take part in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.World number one Novak Djokovic emerged victorious in this year's event – overcoming Tomas Berdych in the final – and he was full of praise for the excellent organisation that goes into the tournament. Taylor Scott International