The 62nd edition of the Basque Country Itzulia, new name of the traditional Tour of the Basque Country, started this Monday in Vitoria with a minute of silence before the starting tape was cut in memory of the civil guard Dámaso Guillén, who died in the line of duty Saturday afternoon in Santiago and Santa Ana Trophy for junior cycling in Pravia (Asturias).
Guillén, recalling the organization of the Basque race, “He’s flying a green flag” and “he wants to stop” “a car with a criminal who stole it minutes before he was going to race” and ended up “carrying him through the air”.
The civil guard, who “left behind a widow and a 19-year-old daughter, died immediately.”
Dámaso Guillén is a native of Jaén and since 2008 he has been assigned to the Oviedo barracks in the traffic detachment.
In his memory, a traditional UCI World event began that will take a large part of the international peloton along the Basque roads until Saturday, the 8th, ending with a final in Eibar (Gipuzkoa), Leitza (Navarra ), Billabona (Gipuzkoa). ), Santurtzi and Amorebieta (Bizkaia).
In total, about 1,000 kilometers of winding roads full of climbs, 27 of them grade, three first-class, and many others not.
In the peloton a great favorite, the Danish Jonas Vingegaard, current champion of the Tour de France, and many aspirants. Among them, last year’s winner, Colombian Daniel Felipe Martínez (INEOS), locals Ion Izagirre (Cofidis), 2019 race winners, Mikel Landa and Pello Bilbao (Bahrain-Victorious) and a powerful Movistar led by Spaniard Enrique Mas.
They all participated in the presentation of the teams that took place this morning in the capital of Álava.
The race started at 1:23 pm with a security device consisting of 260 Ertzaintza troopswho will contact the emergency teams and agents of all local police forces in the towns where the competition is held.
This Monday, before starting the race, the Lehendakari, Iñigo Urkullu, and the Basque Security Councilor, Josu Erkoreka, met at the Basque police academy in Arkaute, reviewing the operation organized for a test that begins with a stage of 165.4 kilometers there is a finish line in Álava town of Labastida.
The tasks of accompaniment and escort in the race will be carried out by 45 traffic agents, including 37 motorcyclists.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
