State unveils host cities for 2008 Tour of Missouri

~ Cape Girardeau was left off the list of places where the race will visit.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Despite an inaugural effort that exceeded its $1 million state budget by $350,000, the Tour of Missouri cycling race is returning in 2008 with an extra day of racing and four new host cities.

The tour begins Sept. 8 with a 90-mile road race from St. Joseph to Kansas City. Rolla, St. James and Hermann join St. Joseph as the other new stops.

The seven-day, 623-mile race returns to Clinton, Springfield, Branson, Lebanon, Jefferson City, St. Charles and St. Louis, where the race again will conclude beneath the Gateway Arch.

Columbia, which served as a finish location for the inaugural race last year, is not among the host cities. Organizers said the city was unable to accommodate the race on the same weekend as a Missouri home football game against Nevada and a centennial celebration for the university's journalism school.

Joined by cycling boosters and officials from the dozen host cities, Gov. Matt Blunt and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder unveiled the race itinerary Wednesday at a Jefferson City hotel.

Kinder, who chairs the Missouri Tourism Commission and is the race's most prominent promoter in state government, said that the first Tour of Missouri accomplished his primary goal: increasing the state's visibility worldwide.

"You have a whole bunch of people across the globe who knew nothing about Missouri," he said. "They do now."

An estimated 350,000 spectators watched at least part of the race in person last year, organizers said. Race viewers on the Web hailed from 73 countries.

Kinder trumpeted a study by the University of Missouri-Columbia's business school that found the first race contributed more than $26 million to the state's economy.

The state set aside $1.2 million for the inaugural effort, but now the race is seeking an additional $350,000 from the Missouri Development Finance Board to cover revenue shortfalls, board documents show. The event had an estimated $4 million budget.

Kinder said he anticipates the state's share of race costs to again hover near the $1 million mark. He also expressed optimism that the race could attract a corporate title sponsor, something it lacked last year.

"We expect to have more [corporate support] than last year and at a higher value," he said.

For Rolla Mayor William Jenks III, the selection of his city as a finish line for the tour's fourth day was cause for celebration.

"It's going to be a fantastic event," he said. "To say we're excited is an understatement."

Race organizers said they have a commitment from 2007 Tour of Missouri winner George Hincapie to return, along with Levi Leipheimer, his former Discovery Channel teammate.

The Missouri race marked the final event for the Discovery team, whose top rider was Lance Armstrong before he retired. Hincapie now races for T-Mobile; Leipheimer joined Astana.

The 2008 event will mark the second year of the state's three-year contract with the race. After that, the picture is less clear.

The event had the support of Blunt, who is not seeking re-election. Kinder is one of at least three Republicans seeking the party's nomination in the governor's race.