Following the appointment of the Giro d’Italia as Ambassador of Sports Diplomacy by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani, the Consulate General in Bahia Blanca organised the first event inspired by and dedicated to the “Pink Race” with competitive, cultural and recreational segments. The event, organised in collaboration with RCS Sports & Events and the General Directorate for Country Promotion of the Foreign Ministry, has been declared of “municipal interest” due to its relevance.
On Saturday 4 May, coinciding with the first stage of the Giro d’Italia, more than eighty national level riders took part in the competition organised in the Parque de Mayo city circuit in different categories (men and women). Near the finish line, decorated with the “Italian tricolour flag” and “pink”, an ‘Italy village’ was set up with scenery, podium, music and a giant screen with promotional images of the Giro d‘Italia, the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, and ‘Made in Italy’, with greetings from some of the protagonists of Italian sport and cycling. In the presence of the Intendente of Bahia Blanca, Federico Susbielles, the winners were presented with pink, blue and white jerseys with the official ‘Ride Like a Pro’ logo of the Giro d’Italia.
At the same time, some 180 cyclists rode through the city streets, colouring Bahia pink and stopping at the city’s symbolic places of Italianity: Piazza Cristoforo Colombo, the headquarters of the Italian Society, the Municipal Palace, the monument to Garibaldi and the adjoining theatre, the Consulate General, the column with the She-wolf of Rome. At each stop, qualified guides illustrated their history. The “Caravan” of the Giro d’Italia then ended in the Parque de Mayo, thus rejoining the sports competition. In Bahia’s busiest street, a symbol of local cycling, a giant mural depicting images of the Giro d’Italia was also created.
The inauguration of a photo exhibition dedicated to Gino Bartali at the events hall of the Bahia Blanca Plaza Shopping is also scheduled for Monday 13 May. In this venue, a workshop will be organised in collaboration with the National University of the South and the National Technological University on the relationship between sustainable mobility, respect for the environment, health and the use of bicycles – values promoted by the Giro d’Italia in its “ride green” segment.
The multi-event was made possible thanks to the Consulate General’s collaboration with a variety of actors from the public, private and civil society sectors. These included: RCS Sports & Events; the Municipality of Bahia Blanca; the ComItEs; the Italian regional associations; the National University of the South and the National Technological University, the Argentinian NGO Plataforma Sustentabilidad Integral; the Italian Hospital and the organiser of the competitive event Giro Producciones..…
