From Milk to Kelloggs - When road cycling took centre stage in Leeds

They turn back the clock to a time Leeds welcomed cyclists competing in The Milk Race one the most famous amateur races in the world.

The Milk Race, the Tour of Britain, was sponsored by the Milk Marketing Board and was 1,500 miles across the UK.

The first two races were open to semi-professionals but from 1960 until 1984 it was open only to amateurs. From 1985 until 1993 it was open to both amateurs and professionals.

These two photos show the finish of the Leeds stage at Roundhay Park in June 1966. Competitors are being greeted by the Lord Mayor, Alderman Joshua S. Walsh, and the Lady Mayoress, with glasses of milk being handed round.

The Morecambe to Leeds stage was won by Yuri Pominov from the USSR in 04 hours 33 minutes and 10 seconds. The overall winner in 1966 was Józef Gawliczek from Poland.

Leeds also featured when the professional Kellogg's Tour of Britain ran for eight editions from 1987 to 1994.

The third photo shows showing the crowds looking onto a stage area sited outside Leeds City Art Gallery in 1992.

The images are published courtesy of photographic archive Leodis, which is run by Leeds Library & Information Service, and West Yorkshire Archive Service.

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