Italian rider Simone Raccani took first place in the "Tour of Armenia"

ArmInfo. RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan attended the award ceremony for the winners of the international multi-day cycling tour “Tour of Armenia.”

As reported by the government press service, Italian professional cyclist Simone Raccani, representing the “Ukyo” team, took first place in the overall standings. The award was presented to him by RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The Italian cyclist was also awarded the title of winner of the “Tour of Armenia.”  This award was also presented by Nikol Pashinyan. Denmark’s Kevin Bile took second place in the overall standings. The award was presented to him by RA Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan. Italy’s Luca Covili, representing the “Bardiani CSF 7 Saber” team, took third place in the overall standings. The award was presented to him by Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan.  ATT Investments, representing the Czech Republic, was recognized as the best team of the tournament. The award was presented to it by Minister of Internal Affairs Arpine Sargsyan.

The previous day, the final, fourth stage of the “Tour of Armenia” took place in Yerevan. The cyclists competed on a 9.4-kilometer city circuit consisting of 10 laps. The total length of the stage was 94 km. Italy’s Michele Gazzoli won the fourth day of the competition. He was awarded by Ara Sadoyan, president of the Cycling Federation of Armenia. Leonardo Vesco (Italy) became the leader of the mountain classification (“king of the mountains”) and received the blue jersey. He was awarded by Luca Guercilena, chief operating officer and cycling director of RC Sports & Events. Kevin Bile (Denmark) became the best young cyclist and received the white jersey. He was awarded by Samuel Sánchez, Olympic champion and former Spanish professional cyclist.

After the award ceremony, the prime minister delivered a speech, welcomed those present and congratulated them on the successful holding of the first tournament. “The very phrase ‘first tournament’ already implies that the second, third, fourth and, hopefully, subsequent tournaments await us. I must say that this is truly a new experience for the Republic of Armenia. A new experience in every sense. Frankly speaking, I do not remember an international cycling race of this kind being held in the Republic of Armenia at least since independence,” Nikol Pashinyan noted.

In his speech, the prime minister thanked the international partners who responded to the interest in Armenia and made every effort to organize the tournament at a high level. Nikol Pashinyan also thanked the state and local self-government bodies of the Republic of Armenia that provided substantial support in ensuring the tournament was held at an appropriate level. “Of course, this tournament, broadcast by dozens of international television channels, undoubtedly increases the country’s visibility and level of recognition and will certainly generate great interest in Armenia, which today also has a very large tourist flow. I am convinced that this tournament will further increase interest in the republic,” the prime minister noted.

Nikol Pashinyan also emphasized the growing interest in a healthy lifestyle, environmentally friendly transport and cycling as the next goal. “I am convinced that many of our children watched our cyclists with great admiration yesterday and in the previous days,” the head of the Armenian government added.

Touching upon the topic of Armenia’s international ties and partnerships, the prime­minister noted: “It is very important that we establish international partnerships through initiatives like this as well.  I think it is no coincidence that this tournament is taking place in 2026. This is another very vivid and eloquent testimony to the peace established in Armenia and the region. This tournament and our decision to continue it will also give new impetus to the development of professional and amateur cycling in Armenia,” the prime minister noted in his speech.

He once again congratulated all the participants and winners of the tournament, as well as the athlete who received the main prize, and noted: “I hope that next year we will conclude the professional cycling tour at a higher level, with greater enthusiasm and greater achievements,” Nikol Pashinyan concluded.

The cycling race started on September 10 from Gavar, the regional center of Gegharkunik. The route of the first day, running along the shores of Lake Sevan and totaling 135 km, ended in Mets Masrik. On the first day, Michal Pomorski of the ATT Investments team was the first to cross the finish line (average speed: 52.331 km/h), becoming the winner of the day.  On the second day of the race, cyclists from 16 teams from different countries around the world covered an approximately 177-kilometer route from Kirants to Stepanavan. Italian cyclist Federico Iacomoni (Ukyo team) was the first to cross the finish line, beating the heroically fighting Leonardo Vesco (Biesse-Carrera-Premac) by just a few millimeters. He covered the distance at an average speed of 40.882 km/h in 4 hours, 19 minutes and 46 seconds. The third stage, Martuni-Dilijan/Parz Lake, was won by Max Hinds of the Netcompany Ineos Racing Academy team, who covered the 162-kilometer distance in 3 hours, 40 minutes and 24 seconds at an average speed of 44.101 km/h and received a 12-second time bonus. The total elevation gain on the third stage was 1,700 meters. The stage started in Martuni. The cyclists passed through the regions of Gegharkunik, Kotayk and Tavush.

The stage winner, as well as the leaders of the various classifications, were awarded by Samuel Sánchez, the 2008 Olympic champion in Beijing and the official ambassador of the tournament, which is being held in Armenia for the first time. The leaders of the tournament’s various categories received four personalized jerseys designed by Ale Cycling, with designs based on Armenian symbolism and cultural motifs. Among the 16 participating teams was  also a team representing Armenia. Over the four days, the cyclists covered a total of more than 500 km.