By sportswriters Zhang Yueshan and Lu Xianting
LIUZHOU, South China, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A starting gun goes off. 126 cyclists from 18 elite teams dash from the starting line, then vanish from sight in just a few seconds, amid cheers from thousands of spectators along the road.
This is the second edition of Gree UCI WorldTour Tour of Guangxi, held in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The 911.4-kilometer-tour includes six stages, passing through five cities: Beihai, Qinzhou, Nanning, Liuzhou and Guilin. In order to be well-prepared, local governments along the route have taken measures to ensure that the race goes off without a hitch.
"Last year, Guangxi managed to standardize 777 kilometers of road and beautify more than 40 villages along the route, this year are still working on this," said Xie Qiang, Guangxi's deputy sports bureau chief.
The coastal city Beihai is the first stop of the tour. Huang Jiang, deputy mayor of Beihai, said that the city was honored to host such a world-level event.
"You can see from the warm-up rides, all the citizens, especially kids, are welcome to join in these activities. What's more, citizens have access to watch 'Tour of Guangxi' live on indoor LED screens in the city. There is a survey indicating that more than 97% of Beihai citizens are able to recognize the 'Tour of Guangxi' logo. People are enjoying both the carnival and the cycling."
The tour has brought various changes to this southern Chinese border region.
The extra consumption from competitors, referees and media during the six-day-tour is a huge boost for Guangxi's economy. The event has added an indirect economic value of 427 million yuan to the region last year, including transportation, catering and entertainment.
Secondly, it brings the people of Guangxi closer to the excitement of cycling. "Nowadays more and more amateur riders are emerging in China, especially in Guangxi. Cycling is not only a good way to keep fit, but an environmentally friendly way of transportation," said Wang Meiyin, one of China's top cyclists, who has taken part in Tour of Guangxi twice.
Last but not least, Tour of Guangxi provides an opportunity to let the world know about Guangxi. The tour is attracting the world's attention and will provide Guangxi with still more possibilities to organize these global-level events.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of establishment of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous region. The region hosting the "Tour of Guangxi" is a perfect expression of how this border region has changed in past 60 years. Fittingly, this top-level UCI tour event is speeding up Guangxi's development in a healthy and sustainable manner.
