Shorts: British Cycling, Kitman Labs, Portsmouth FC

British Cycling has revealed the host venues for the 2026 Lloyds Tour of Britain Men.

The five stage event has been scheduled to begin in Lincoln on 2nd September 2026, before concluding in Earlston, Scottish Borders on 6th September 2026.

The route has been designed to take the peloton through Lincolnshire, East Yorkshire, and North Yorkshire, before heading north to Scotland. Stage one has been confirmed to feature a start and finish in the cathedral city of Lincoln, marking the first time in over 30 years that a national Tour has visited the city.

Stage two has been scheduled to run from Boston to Skegness, whilst stage three is set to connect Hull and Beverley. The penultimate stage has been arranged to see riders travel from Helmsley to Leyburn in North Yorkshire, before the final stage concludes on a new start-finish circuit in Earlston.

According to independent research, the 2025 event has generated a cumulative economic impact of £62.3m for the local host areas.

British Cycling has also been nominated for ‘Sport Organisation of the Year’ at the 2024 Sport Industry Awards.

Jonathan Day, Director of Events for British Cycling Ventures, said, “We are delighted to be bringing the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men to these fantastic locations later this year. We are bringing new hosts and stages in Lincoln, Boston and Skegness, and Leyburn, and it is fantastic to return to previous hosts of the race in Hull and Beverley, Helmsley, and the Scottish Borders. Taking the Tour to Lincoln for the first time, a city synonymous with its love for cycling, will be special for the opening stage of the men’s race.

“On behalf of British Cycling Ventures, I would like to pay thanks to our partners across the five stages for supporting the hosting and delivery of this September’s race and enabling us to bring another memorable and action packed five days of world class racing.”

Leeds United have integrated first-team operations with their existing Academy infrastructure through an expanded agreement with Kitman Labs.

The Premier League club has extended its use of Kitman Labs’ iP: Intelligence Platform beyond the Academy environment, creating a connected system designed to support player development, medical management and football operations across multiple departments.

The implementation covers Performance Medicine, Performance Optimisation and Coaching & Development solutions, alongside tools for operational management, reporting and data visualisation.

By operating within the same technology environment, staff will be able to access information relating to player progression, training, injury management, wellness monitoring and development planning through a shared platform.

“What sets this kind of deployment apart is the connection between the Academy and the first team running on the same infrastructure,” said Stephen Smith, founder and chief executive of Kitman Labs. “That continuity is what good development clubs have been working towards for years, and it is now in place at Leeds.”

The move enables a single player record to be maintained throughout the pathway from youth development to senior football, supporting greater consistency in planning and decision-making.

The expansion builds on the club’s existing involvement in the Premier League’s Elite Player Performance Plan, under which Academy systems are operated using Kitman Labs technology. The addition of the senior set-up places both environments within the same data structure.

The development reflects a wider trend across professional football towards integrating performance, medical and operational information to support player management and long-term development. Kitman Labs works with more than 2,000 teams, leagues, federations and high-performance organisations in 26 countries.

Leeds United are competing in the Premier League following promotion from the Championship at the end of the 2024-25 season.

Portsmouth FC have extended their partnership with Richmond Motor Group, in association with MG Motor UK, ahead of the 2026/27 season.

The automotive retailer first joined the club as a principal partner in 2024, with its branding featured on the back of the men’s first-team shorts. The brand will now transition to become the club’s sleeve sponsor for the upcoming campaign.

Sam Nobes, Operations Director, Richmond Motor Group, said, “We are proud to be strengthening our partnership with Portsmouth Football Club ahead of the new season. Moving onto the sleeve is a great reflection of how our relationship has grown, and the success we’ve shared working together over the past couple of seasons. We’re excited to continue building on that and delivering more memorable moments for Pompey fans.”

Mark Judges, Chief Commercial Officer, Portsmouth Football Club, said, “Richmond MG have proven themselves to be an exemplary principal partner; committed, creative, and genuinely aligned with what this club stands for. The move to the sleeve is a reflection of two seasons of strong commercial collaboration and real activation that our supporters have felt. As we head into 2026/27, we’re delighted to have them alongside us and looking forward to continuing to grow this partnership together.”

Rights and licensing technology company TrueRights has appointed Harry O’Hara as Commercial Director.

Former West Ham United and E1 Series executive Harry O’Hara has joined TrueRights to lead the company’s commercial strategy. The appointment comes as sports organisations face questions regarding how intellectual property (IP) is used within artificial intelligence (AI) generated content. TrueRights provides a technology platform that helps sports rights holders manage and monetise their digital assets.

O’Hara has joined from the E1 Series, having previously held roles at Premier League football club West Ham United. O’Hara brings almost eight years of sports experience to TrueRights, where he will report directly to Founder and CEO Benjamin Woollams.

Harry O’Hara, Commercial Director, TrueRights, said, “Generative AI is fundamentally reshaping how content is created, consumed and valued, and that shift is only accelerating. What drew me to TrueRights is that it’s building the infrastructure the industry has been missing: the rights, consent and attribution layer that ensures IP is used correctly, monitored properly and fairly compensated.“

The Sport & Recreation Alliance (SRA), the independent representative body which supports national sports organisations in the UK, has partnered with Halfspace to launch Sport Tower ai.

The 12 month agreement, which includes an option to extend, has established the Pri0r1ty Intelligence Group subsidiary as SRA’s official AI partner. The partnership delivers AI tools and data solutions to nearly 300 UK sports organisations, reaching an estimated 15,000 users.

Built on existing AI infrastructure, SportTower.ai enables member organisations to build and develop AI systems trained on their own data in a secure, GDPR-compliant environment. The platform provides direct access to AI-powered tools including Advisor, Fan Sonar, Vox, and Compass ID, alongside sector trend analysis.

Rory Maxwell, CEO of Pri0r1ty, said, “Partnering with the Sport & Recreation Alliance as its official AI partner is a strategic opportunity to bring our AI tools to a wide network of national governing bodies and their members, scaling our business model and reaching a mass-market audience. We care passionately about better supporting the UK sports ecosystem and are delighted to be working with The Alliance to extend our AI and data capabilities to help those organisations grow their businesses.“