The countdown clock is ticking for the start of the Tour de France in the Basque Country. On 1 July, Saturday, that clock will reach 00:00:00 and many of the best cyclists on the international scene will try to show their best version to shine in the best race in the world, which in its 110th edition will complete its first three stages in the Basque Country.
In front of Bilbao City Hall, the general director of the round, Christian Prudhomme, accompanied by Juan Mari Aburto, Mayor of Bilbao; Bingen Zupiria, Minister of Culture and Linguistic Policy of the Basque Government and Elixabete Etxanobe, Provincial Councillor for Public Administration and Institutional Relations, jointly pressed the giant button that started the Tissot clock, which began the inexorable countdown to the start of the race.
The trio Kalakan and around 150 members of all the choirs of the Bilbao Choral Society, wearing yellow scarves around their necks, enlivened the event with performances.
The activation ceremony was completed with the illumination of a 13 X 10.6 metre jersey in the Aznar building (opposite the town hall, on the other side of the estuary), followed by the illumination in yellow of the façade of the Town Hall. The large number of people in attendance enjoyed some emotionally charged moments and were able to feel fully involved in events that are now part of the history of Basque cycling.
The festive day continued with a route through the centre of the town, from the Town Hall to the palace of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, and then from the provincial institution to the San Mamés stadium, the 'finish line' of the route.
As the peloton passed by, some of the city's most emblematic buildings, such as the Torre Bizkaia and the Palacio Foral, were lit up in yellow. Andoni Agirrebeitia, mayor of Amorebieta-Etxano, the municipality that will host the start of the third stage of the Tour de France, was waiting for the peloton at the provincial institution.
At the finish line -San Mamés- Christian Prudhomme received an Athletic jersey, commemorating the 125th anniversary of the institution, from the hands of Jon Uriarte, president of the entity, and Garazi Murua and Iker Muniain, both captains of the first teams.
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