Martin Lange // Photo credit: THOMAS SAMSON / AFP
The Tour de France will start this Saturday from Bilbao, in the Spanish Basque Country. A great moment for the seven Basque runners, who will all pass just a few kilometers from their homes. While waiting for the start, the whole region is preparing to celebrate the event.
The Tour de France is about to hit the road again. For this 2023 edition, the first kilometers will once again be abroad. After Denmark last year, it is Bilbao, in the Spanish Basque Country, which hosts the start of the Tour. This is the second time that the Spanish Basque Country has hosted the Grande Boucle. The first was in 1992, during the reign of Miguel Indurain. Here in Bilbao, you don’t come across thousands of bicycles like in Copenhagen last year, but the Basques have a visceral attachment to cycling.
special moments
“We cross 100 cities” explains Mikel, the coordinator of the Grand Départ. “I think it’s a party for the Basque Country and for the Tour too,” he continues at the microphone of Europe 1. This year, seven Basques are hitting the road. Among them: Ion Izagirre. The rider from the Cofidis team will pass three kilometers from his house. A necessarily special moment. “The most important race in the world is here in the Basque country. And it’s very special for me,” he said. There will therefore be emotion for the start of the Tour, but not only since with ten passes listed on the first two stages, this great Basque start is also announced as one of the toughest in history.