Women’s masters racers tear down Erie Street during one of the Tour di Via Italia bike races in Windsor on Saturday, August 12, 2023. Some 160 racers tore around the streets of Windsor’s Little Italy Saturday at the Tour di Via Italia street bicycle races.
The race, which was first held in 1958, remains a community favourite, says organizer Pietro DiPonio.
Most of the riders come to the city to race, with a little less than 25 per cent from the local area.
The race is a popular one with riders, said DiPonio. “It’s been pretty reliably around for a long, long time,” he said. “There’s a good community feel to it, it’s very well supported by the community.
“It’s got a bigger … kind of prize money.” Racers in the Elite Women category in the Tour di Via Italia bike races in Windsor on Saturday. The race, with its four rounded corners, has its start and finish on Erie Street, home to many Italian restaurants and businesses.
“This is one of the (bicycle racing) hotspots of it in Ontario, this event,” DiPonio said.
While the neighbourhood surrounding Via Italian, he said, has become “less Italian, … people still support the race. I’ve got people from all over the city that help.“To make this happen is a big deal. It requires a lot of people. There’s lots of people that support it.”The race is part of Italian bicycling culture, he said. Racers in the Pro Men category in the Tour di Via Italia bike races […]
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