Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

Cyclists from 3 continents take part at the 69th Tour of Bulgaria

One of Europe’s oldest cycling tours begins today

2
Photo: library

120 cyclists from 20 teams from 3 continents and a total of 20 nationalities are to take part at the 69th Tour of Bulgaria. 

The start of the tour will be given in front of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia at 4 pm today (August 27). 

Within 5 days the cyclists will ride more than 800 kilometers on a varied and a quite difficult route throughout Bulgaria. The grand finale to the 60th Tour of Bulgaria will be on September 1 in the town of Momchilgrad, located in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains. The cycling race aims to promote this sport in Bulgaria. 



The history of the organized cycling movement in Bulgaria began at the end of the 19th century when the first clubs appeared. In 1902 they united in a union - the Bulgarian Cycling Union (BCU). General Georgi Vazov, a war hero and brother of the renowned Bulgarian poet Ivan Vazov, was elected its first chairman. 

In 1909, the Bulgarian Cycling Union  organized the first cycling Tour of Vitosha, which entered the world history of this sport as one of the oldest and best quality races. 

In 1924, the first Tour of Bulgaria took place. It was among the oldest and most prestigious races in the world and was preceded only by the Tour De France (which started in 1903), the Tour of Belgium (1908) and the Giro d’Italia (1909).



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

Gallery

More from category

Khaalia Hillsman from USA to play for the Bulgarian national basketball team

The players of the Bulgarian women's national basketball team have welcomed American Khaalia Hillsman, who has recently received Bulgarian citizenship. She will play for the Bulgarian team for the first time next week and joins the..

published on 11/4/24 9:05 AM

Grigor Dimitrov reaches the quarterfinals of Paris Masters

Grigor Dimitrov has qualified for the quarter-finals of the Masters 1000 tennis tournament in Paris. The Bulgarian, who reached the final last season, won 6:2, 4:6, 7:6 (5) against Arthur Rinderknech from France who participated with..

published on 11/1/24 9:45 AM
Grigor Dimitrov

ATP: Grigor Dimitrov - the tennis player with the deadliest forehand

The forehand of the best Bulgarian tennis player Grigor Dimitrov is a real cannon , writes ATP. ATP Infosys Beyond The Numbers analysis of average stroke speed and spin, based on the performance of top 10 players over the past three seasons, shows that..

published on 10/31/24 3:39 PM