International Tour of Bulgaria cycling race

The 66th International Tour of Bulgaria cycling race started on 3 September. The start was in Sofia, and the winners finished in Plovdiv on 9 September. This year the organisers opted for an unconventional tour of Bulgaria: the first stages went around the northern part of the country and the rest around the south.

146 riders from 15 teams from the United Kingdom, Hungary, Romania, Turkey, Belarus, Ukraine, Serbia and Azerbaijan took part in the 66th International Tour of Bulgaria, including 5 Bulgarian teams, among them Plovdiv’s CC Tsar Simeon 1898. Over six days they covered about 850 km in the country. This year the Tour of Bulgaria is twice as long as the previous one and was held in 13 stages. The towns it passed through were Sofia, Troyan, Svishtov, Targovishte, Ivaylovgrad, Kardzhali, Tvarditsa, Elena and Plovdiv. The Minister of Youth and Sports, Krasen Kralev, presented the individual and team awards to the podium finishers of the 66th International Tour of Bulgaria. He attended the finish of the final stage from Stara Zagora to Plovdiv (98.2 km), after which the official ceremony and closing of the race took place. The organisers from the Bulgarian Cycling Union invited all the Bulgarian winners of past years to the awards ceremony. Bachkovo spring water supported all the stages of the Tour.