Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna confirm joint bid for Tour de France Grand Depart

Race leader Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-QuickStep) attacks on the gravel section of La Planche des Belles Filles on stage 6 of the 2019 Tour de France, prompting a reaction from French compatriot Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ)
(Image credit: Bettini Photo)

The mayor of Florence has confirmed that the Tuscan Renaissance city and the neighbouring Emilia-Romagna region have joined forces in the hope of hosting the first ever Tour de France Grand Depart in Italy.

Despite Italy's long heritage of cycling success and Tour de France victories thanks to Ottavio Bottecchia, Gino Bartali, Fausto Coppi, Gastone Nencini, Felice Gimondi, Marco Pantani and Vincenzo Nibali, the Tour has never started in Italy, with only occasional stage finishes cross the Alps from France into Italy.  

Stephen Farrand
Head of News

Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.