"Proud sponsor of the 2008 Tour of Missouri"

The 2009 Tour of Missouri bicycle race has been set for Sept. 7-13. The event has been upgraded to “above category” status by USA Cycling and world governing bodies for cycling.

The third annual race will start on Labor Day for the first time and conclude six days later on Sunday. Host cities will be announced late next month in Jefferson City.

A news release on Dec. 10th, 2008 said the upgrade puts the Missouri event on par with a handful of major professional races outside of Europe. The only other above-category race in the United States is the Amgen Tour of California, scheduled for Feb. 13-22.

Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, chairman of Tour of Missouri Inc., cited the “overwhelming success” of the Missouri race in the governing bodies’ decision to raise the status of the event.