«I am very happy with this first big start» from Italy, «as you know it had never happened before in the history of the Tour de France», and «I saw that the rain of the last few days is behind us and that we will have a nice
sun, the beautiful sun of Florence, which adapts very well to Grand Departure». This was stated by Christian Prudhomme, general director of the Tour de France, guest of the show Becycle of Pitti Immagine in Florence. On Saturday the tour will start from the Tuscan capital to stop first in Emilia Romagna and then in Piedmont. «I am very happy to see collateral events like this
– he said – in which the worlds of culture and the Tour de France mix, and
obviously I can’t wait to witness the first brawls from Florence to Rimini and then obviously from Cesenatico to Bologna, passing through the San Luca climb, and then the third stage for the sprinters.”
Speaking again about Becycle, Prudhomme said he was very impressed by the collection of cycling-themed memorabilia, from jerseys to vintage magazines, by the English designer Paul Smith. «I knew, obviously-he observed him-him, that he was madly in love with cycling. The collection is absolutely remarkable. You can see that he is a real enthusiast, and meeting people who have had it
success in fashion, even though he originally wanted to be a racing cyclist, he is really very handsome: I am impressed by his collection.”
The fan zone in Santa Croce and the route
In Piazza Santa Croce a place has been set up (and already opened to enthusiasts) FanPark for fans and enthusiasts, with free entry, with promotional and advertising stands. Saturday 29 June is the day of the departure of the first stage of the Tour de France, which from Florence will take cyclists to Rimini after 206 km. The group will start from the Villaggio alle Cascine (at 12) in non-competitive mode and will reach Piazza Signoria and then continue towards Piazzale Michelangelo and the Gavinana district to pay homage. Gino Bartali. The actual race will instead begin at Viola Park, in the municipality of Bagno a Ripoli: from there, the race will continue towards Pontassieve, Pelago, Rufina, Dicomano and San Godenzo, until crossing into Romagna towards the finish line in Rimini.
