KENDAL could host a stage start of the Tour of Britain cycle race.

Organisers of the event have approached South Lakeland District Council, whose cabinet members agreed to put £20,000 aside to help bring the race to town.

Kendal has been made a ‘preferred partner’, which means SLDC can apply for the town to be the starting point of a race leg.

Councillors heard the offer had come about because of the successful stage five finish on Kendal’s Beast Banks in 2007, when massive crowds flocked to see British Olympian Mark Cavendish come home second.

A report by Debbie Fox, interim assistant director of community investment and development, said that a stage start in King’s Lynn near Norwich last year generated £5 million.

Coun Hilary Stephenson said it was too early to tell if a similar amount of money could be made in Kendal. She also said that a final decision was expected within the next week or two.

“We are working hard to make this happen,” she said.

“If we get it then it will draw a significant amount of following from the increasingly big cycling fraternity in South Lakeland, and if people come and stay in Kendal and participate in what is going on around the town then it could bring in a lot of money.”

The week-long race starts this year on September 11 in the Scottish borders, but no other towns or cities have been announced for stage starts and finishes yet. Bruce Everett, owner of Brucie’s bike shop in Kirkland, said people still talked about the 2007 event at his shop.

“It’ll be fabulous if we get a stage start,” said Mr Everett. “It’ll bring a lot of people in and really put Kendal on the map. Once this news gets out if we get it then people will get excited about it because they’ll remember what happened in 2007.”

The event will be filmed by the BBC and ITV, and is broadcast in countries such as Japan, America, Italy, France, Holland and Belgium.

A spokesperson for Cumbria Tourism said: “Events such as this are a great way of stimulating interest in the area, which in turn can help support the local economy and often tourism businesses.

“The Tour of Britain is a prestigious cycling event and would also prove a spectacle for both residents, cyclists, supporters of the race and participants.”

Another popular event to receive financial support from SLDC was the Great North Swim in Windermere.

The authority agreed to provide £10,000 of funding, which will be used to help organise the race.