Tour d'Azerbaidjan 2017 kicks off

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

"Tour d'Azerbaidjan-2017", a 2.1 multi-stage bicycle race of the UCI Europe Tour, kicked off in Baku.

Twenty two teams from 18 countries confirmed to tackle the 5-day race.

This is the sixth edition of the event, which started in 2012 as the Heydar Aliyev Anniversary Tour (U23) after which it became the Tour d’Azerbaidjan.

Taking start in the State Flag Square the race will travel around 2 cities and 10 regions of Azerbaijan and return Baku in the last stage.

The Synergy Baku Cycling Project comes into the race with a strong line-up that includes recent double stage winner at the Tour du Maroc, and 14th place finisher in Azerbaijan last season, Krill Pozdnyakov, as well as teammate Elchin Asadov, a triple Azerbaijani TT champion and 2014 road champion.

The cyclists will overcome the distance of 836 miles.

The first stage starts in Baku and finishes in Sumqayit racing 150 km distance.

On May 4, the second stage will take the start from the Velopark near the Caspian seashore and head out to high Caucasus Mountains racing 187 km distance from Baku to Ismayilli. The stage looks challenging with strong winds, winding roads and uphill.

The third stage will take the start from Gabala to Oghuzh racing 177 km towards Sheki then racing all the way around finishing in Gabala. Stones on a site near the medieval Caravanserai can become a serious challenge for the riders.

The start of the fourth stage is in Gabala. After racing 164 km kilometers the riders will reach up to the finish line near Pirqulu. The route will go through Aghsu mountain cliffs up to Pirgulu.

In 2018, Azerbaijan will host BMX World Championship.