Edwards, who is women’s officer for Otley Cycling Club, recalled how in 2014 millions of people turned out by the roadside to support the male riders in the Tour de France Grand Depart.
“If we can get anything like those numbers for the women’s races, then that’s going to be a huge boost to women and girls looking to start cycling,” she said.
“For women’s cycling, there’s still this huge discrepancy between what’s shown and what’s accessible for men and what’s accessible for women.”
Club members said the fact that female cyclists who compete at the very highest level were coming to Yorkshire for the start of the race in July 2027 reinforced the growing momentum of the sport across the county.