Thursday May 28, 2009
Cyclists pay visit to quake-hit area
CHIETI (Italy): Former world champions Mario Cipollini and Paolo Bettini led a delegation of cyclists through the earthquake-hit Abruzzo region Tuesday as the Tour of Italy paid tribute to the area.
Cipollini and Bettini were joined by other retired cyclists, as well as some current riders during the Tour’s second rest day.
The group began their ride in San Gregorio and moved on to Onna and Tempera before passing through L’Aquila, some of the hardest hit towns of the April 6 quake, which killed nearly 300 people and drove some 50,000 from their homes.
The race will remain in Abruzzo for stage 17, an 83km leg from Chieti to Blockhaus, with an uphill finish.
In the overall standings, Russia’s Denis Menchov holds a 39-second lead over Abruzzo native Danilo Di Luca.
“I’m hoping to give the Abruzzesi a day of joy, excitement and hope,” Di Luca said. “I’m going to try and win it for them.” — AP
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