Eneco Tour of Benelux

Infobox Cycling race
name = Eneco Tour of Benelux
current_event =


date = August
region = Benelux
english = Eneco Tour of Benelux
localnames =
nickname =
discipline = Road
competition = UCI ProTour
type = Stage-race
organiser =
director =
first = 2005
number = 4 (as of 2008)
last =
firstwinner = flagicon|USA Bobby Julich
mostwins =
mostrecent = flagicon|ESP Iván GutiérrezThe Eneco Tour of Benelux is a UCI ProTour road bicycle racing stage-race. Its name refers to its main sponsor, the energy company Eneco Energie. The first Eneco Tour of Benelux took place from August 3 to August 10 2005

History

The Tour of the Netherlands began on 6 May 1948, but only became an annual event in 1975. From about 2000 it was known as the Eneco tour. The start of the UCI's ProTour in 2005 saw the faltering tour reorganised and reinvigorated.

Organization

The ENECO Tour continues the faltering Tour of the Netherlands, which UCI president Hein Verbruggen deemed necessary for marketing reasons.ref|Graat2005 The Dutch Tour organisation got a better sponsor (ENECO Energie). But because the race was not difficult enough, it could not be accepted into the new ProTour. At that point the organisation sought help from the organisation of the Tour of Belgium and the Tour de Luxembourg. They envisaged a Tour of the Benelux that would replace the three. This led to the Tour of Belgium as a co-organiser. The Tours of Belgium and Luxembourg will continue as such. The co-organisation or incorporation of the Tour de Luxembourg did not materialize. In a few years, the name will officially become the Tour of the Benelux.

Winners

General classification

The overall winner of the race by time wears a "white jersey" (Dutch: "Witte trui" or French: "Maillot blanc").

Young rider classification

Before 2007, the best young (under 25) rider of the race got to wear a "yellow jersey". (Dutch: "Gele trui" or French: "Maillot jaune").

References

* Graat, John (August 3 2005). "'Fantastische' Pro Tour zegen voor profronde". Trouw (Dutch newspaper), p. 13.

External links

* [http://www.enecotour.nl Official homepage]