# General classification in the Tour of Britain

The General classification in the Tour of Britain is the most prestigious classification out of the four in the Tour of Britain, the one which is won by the overall winner. Historically the leader of this competition has worn a yellow jersey, but, from the 2011 edition due to sponsorship, it became known as the IG Markets Gold Jersey. In 2017, it became a green jersey in light of sponsorship from Ovo Energy.

## Rules

Like most cycling events the winner is determined by who has the fastest time over the entirety of the race. Time bonuses can be won by winning a stage, or reaching an intermediate sprint or the top of a climb first. The rider who has completed the course in the smallest time will win the Tour of Britain.

## Results

The winners, runners-up and third places were:
| | 1st | Team | 2nd | Team | 3rd | Team |
| 2004 | Mauricio Ardila (COL) | Vlaanderen–T Interim | Julian Dean (NZL) | Crédit Agricole | Nick Nuyens (BEL) | Quick-Step–Davitamon |
| 2005 | Nick Nuyens (BEL) | Quick-Step–Innergetic | Michael Blaudzun (DEN) | Team CSC | Javier Cherro Molina (ESP) | Comunidad Valenciana–Elche |
| 2006 | Martin Pedersen (DEN) | Team CSC | Luis Pasamontes (ESP) | Unibet.com | Filippo Pozzato (ITA) | Quick-Step–Innergetic |
| 2007 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Agritubel | Adrián Palomares (ESP) | Fuerteventura–Canarias | Luke Roberts (AUS) | Team CSC |
| 2008 | Geoffroy Lequatre (FRA) | Agritubel | Steve Cummings (GBR) | Barloworld | Ian Stannard (GBR) | Great Britain |
| 2009 | Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) | Team Columbia–HTC | Christopher Sutton (AUS) | Garmin–Slipstream | Martin Reimer (GER) | Cervélo TestTeam |
| 2010 | Michael Albasini (SWI) | Team HTC–Columbia | Borut Božič (SLO) | Vacansoleil | Greg Henderson (NZL) | Team Sky |
| 2011 | Lars Boom (NED) | Rabobank | Steve Cummings (GBR) | Team Sky | Jan Bárta (CZE) | UnitedHealthcare |
| 2012 | Nathan Haas (AUS) | Garmin–Sharp | Damiano Caruso (ITA) | Liquigas–Cannondale | Leigh Howard (AUS) | Orica–GreenEDGE |
| 2013 | Bradley Wiggins (GBR) | Team Sky | Martin Elmiger (SUI) | IAM Cycling | Simon Yates (GBR) | Great Britain |
| 2014 | Dylan van Baarle (NED) | Garmin–Sharp | Michał Kwiatkowski (POL) | Omega Pharma–Quick-Step | Bradley Wiggins (GBR) | Team Sky |
| 2015 | Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) | MTN–Qhubeka | Wout Poels (NED) | Team Sky | Owain Doull (GBR) | WIGGINS |
| 2016 | Steve Cummings (GBR) | Team Dimension Data | Rohan Dennis (AUS) | BMC Racing Team | Tom Dumoulin (NED) | Team Giant–Alpecin |
| 2017 | Lars Boom (NED) | LottoNL–Jumbo | Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) | Team Dimension Data | Stefan Küng (SUI) | BMC Racing Team |
| 2018 | Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) | Quick-Step Floors | Wout Poels (NED) | Team Sky | Primož Roglič (SLO) | LottoNL–Jumbo |
| 2019 | Mathieu van der Poel (NED) | Corendon–Circus | Matteo Trentin (ITA) | Mitchelton–Scott | Jasper De Buyst (BEL) | Lotto–Soudal |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 2021 | Wout van Aert (BEL) | Team Jumbo–Visma | Ethan Hayter (GBR) | Ineos Grenadiers | Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) | Deceuninck–Quick-Step |
| 2022 | Gonzalo Serrano (ESP) | Movistar Team | Tom Pidcock (GBR) | Ineos Grenadiers | Omar Fraile (ESP) | Ineos Grenadiers |
| 2023 | Wout van Aert (BEL) | Team Jumbo–Visma | Tobias Halland Johannessen (NOR) | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | Damien Howson (AUS) | Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team |

## Wins by country

| Wins | Nation |
| 4 | Netherlands |
| 3 | France |
| 3 | Belgium |
| 2 | United Kingdom |
| 2 | Norway |
| 1 | Australia |
| 1 | Colombia |
| 1 | Denmark |
| 1 | Switzerland |

## Repeat winners

| Wins | Rider | Editions |
| 2 | Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) | 2009, 2015 |
| 2 | Lars Boom (NED) | 2011, 2017 |
| 2 | Wout van Aert (BEL) | 2021, 2023 |

## Sponsorship

Before the 2011 race, it was announced that the general classification would be sponsored by IG Markets, changing the race leaders jersey from the Yellow Jersey to the IG Markets Gold Jersey, in a competition jersey shake-up which changed the design of all four jerseys in the event.