Mijas was the starting point for the first stage of the 67th edition of the Tour of Andalusia 'Ruta del Sol'. The stage began with the neutralized start in La Cala, it passed through Las Lagunas and the first difficulties started upon arrival at Mijas Village. The stage has 152 kilometres between La Cala de Mijas and Zahara de la Sierra with two third-category, and one second-category mountain pass. Just before that moment, at the La Cala fairgrounds, we were able to enjoy all the assembly that surrounds this type of tests with 7 of the 10 best teams of the International Cycling Union, and several top-level cyclists such as Cavendish or one of the favourites for the general, Miguel Ángel López, stellar sign-up by Movistar. The presence of Andalusian cyclists such as Luis Ángel Maté, who is racing at home, or Juanjo Lobato, both with Euskaltel, also stood out. The 'pelotón' (group) also passed through Las Lagunas with the official start of the stage on Avenida María Zambrano.
Subsequently, it passed through the historic centre of Mijas Village, where the race was led by three escaped cyclists, with Antonio Jesús Soto from Euskaltel, coming from behind, once the difficulties at the beginning of the first stage had been overcome. Cavendish, world champion, lagged behind, fighting the tough slopes at La Cruz. Finally, Spanish cyclist Gonzalo Serrano, with Movistar, donned the leader's jersey in the first stage.
Mijas Comunicación broadcast a special live programme, covering the moments before the start of the race, with testimonies of cyclists, fans, and institutional representatives that support the event.
International projection of Mijas
The end of the previous edition of the ‘Ruta del Sol’ already linked Mijas to the 'Vuelta', leading to this year, instead of getting off their bikes here, our municipality becoming the starting point for this international sporting event, with which Mijas has once again made its way onto the screens of more than 130 million homes in 180 countries around the world. This was highlighted by the mayor of Mijas, Josele González (PSOE), who stated that “thanks to the commitment that this Local Council has with the promotion of our municipality, we are here today, because what better way to promote ourselves than to do so with sports events of this level, of this importance, which also have an incredible production team, meaning that all those who are going to watch this test, this route, will see our magnificent landscapes, our beaches, our natural environment and this, in short, is the best possible presentation of the municipality”.
For the Mijas Town Hall, according to the mayor, this test has also been a "major organisational challenge". The logistics team has contemplated an outstanding deployment of the Civil Guard, with more than 80 agents, Local Police, Civil Protection and the collaboration of the Sports department, which has been, at all times, watching over the route. “I have been able to exchange impressions with the cyclists and they say that the route is spectacular, that it is one of the ones they like the most; and this was one of the objectives, that we become the nuclear point and centre for sport in Andalusia and in the world, because this is broadcast on Eurosport”, stressed the councillor for Sports, Andrés Ruiz (Cs).
The organisation appreciated the work done by the Mijas Town Hall. In representation of the Local Government, the mayor, minutes before the neutralized start at the La Cala fairgrounds, received the jersey of Astana, the winning team of the previous edition of the 'Vuelta'. This year, the 'Ruta del Sol' is carried out in a very different way to how it was planned for the month of February, when Mijas was scheduled to close the route instead of opening it. The change, it seems, has not been bad for the local economy, taking into account the economic impact left by the previous 'Vuelta' in each of the days: 1.4 million euros. "We have spent three or four days occupying the hotels in Mijas, meaning that have also provided a small boost to the tourist and commerce section, which we need so much in Malaga", highlighted the director of the Cycling Tour, Joaquin Cuevas.
Collaboration between administrations
The Malaga Provincial Council and the Tourism Delegation have also participated in the sponsorship of this event, which has mobilised thousands of people, reactivating different sectors such as the hotel industry, where, according to the Vice-president of the Provincial Council in Malaga, Juan Carlos Maldonado (Cs), “7,000 beds will be occupied, and therefore, for the province this event is important from the point of view of promotion. We are now in Fitur as well, and this also contributes to that image and to recover safe sporting events, all the administrations are working on this”.
The Delegate for Tourism in Malaga, Nuria Ródriguez (Cs) said she was “proud to see how public and private entities continue to work as a team, and congratulations to the organisers, to Joaquín Cuevas and his entire Deporinter family and, of course, to the Mijas Town Hall and its Department for Sports, who continue to do the impossible to ensure that Mijas is visible anywhere in the world and, above all, in such a positive way, through sports”.
Safety, "on wheels"
Security, they point out, has also been perfectly organised. The UCI (International Cycling Union) anti-COVID protocol established 100 mandatory points, which, they say, have been rigorously executed. “There are three bubbles: one, in which the cyclists are, the main one, all with negative PCR; a second where the people who have contact with the runners are, all with negative PCR and antigen tests; and a third bubble for the logistics team, who have no contact with the runners but have all had to pass the antigen test”, explained Cuevas.
For this reason, everything indicates that Mijas will maintain its love affair with the Cycling Tour, and next year, there is a high likelihood that we will see this multi-coloured snake winding its way at high speed through our territory once again.
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