THE owners of the Black Hat pub in Ilkley have renamed their pub The Sir Gary Verity in the lead up to the Tour de Yorkshire cycle race which will pass through the town on Stage 3 on Sunday, May 3.

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, played a pivotal role in bringing the Grand Depart of the Tour de France to Yorkshire last year and there was some consternation, particularly amongst Yorkshire folk, when he was overlooked in the New Year Honours list.

Business owner Stewart Taylor said: “We wanted to pay an affectionate tribute.”

The pub will be known as The Sir Gary Verity for one week only from Monday.