The municipality will experience a historic day that will combine elite sports, international projection, and citizen participation, with a strong economic and media impact. They encourage residents and visitors to fill the streets, experience the atmosphere of the race, and participate in a unique event.
Poio will experience this Tuesday, September 9th, a historic day with the start of stage 16 of the Cycling Tour of Spain, an event that will mobilize more than 3,000 people, including runners, organization, and accredited media.
For a few hours, the municipality will become the protagonist of world cycling, hosting one of the sporting events with the greatest international impact. The event will have a great media and economic impact, and will be an excellent platform to highlight the tourist, cultural, social, and organizational potential of Poio. According to the mayor, Ángel Moldes, “this is not just a sporting event, it is a unique opportunity for national and international projection that will generate benefits at multiple levels. The event will have an significant economic, tourist, and media impact, and will be a unique showcase to show the world our heritage, our culture, and our local productive sectors.”
In addition, one of the great advantages for the municipality is that Monday the 8th will be a rest day for La Vuelta, which means that both the organization and the teams will be installed in Poio from the previous day. This will allow for greater media presence, more visibility for the municipality, and a progressive arrival of visitors and professionals, with a direct economic and tourist impact that will extend beyond the stage itself.
INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURE FROM PRAZA DA CHOUSA
The stage will start at 13.05 Hours from the Praza da Chousa, where the main departure device will be installed, including team parking, technical areas, team signature control, and 14 official sponsor stands. Approximately two hours prior, the La Vuelta advertising caravan, consisting of 22 vehicles, will begin its journey, traversing the PO-308 from Combarro to A Barca, passing through San Xoán and San Salvador.
The media impact will be enormous: more than 1,000 journalists and photographers are accredited, belonging to 305 media outlets from around the world. The broadcast will reach 190 countries, with an average of 1 million viewers per stage, which represents an incalculable opportunity to reinforce the image of Poio internationally.
“It is a unique opportunity to demonstrate our organizational capacity and project Poio to the world. We want this day to remain in the collective memory as a day of pride and celebration for all the residents,” says Moldes, who recalls that without the unconditional support and sponsorship of the Pontevedra Provincial Council and the Xunta de Galicia, this historic milestone would be unthinkable.
PREPARATIONS AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
The Poio Town Council has been finalizing the preparations for the event for weeks, and coordinating with the Civil Guard, the Local Police, and Civil Protection the traffic cuts and detours necessary to guarantee the correct development of the stage, which will be notified to the educational centers and published on the town council’s social networks. In this sense, they call for citizen collaboration to make strictly necessary trips and use alternative routes to the regional road. La Vuelta’s security device mobilizes around 8,000 troops throughout the State, guaranteeing the protection of the runners and the public.
In addition, during the previous days, parallel activities are already being developed to involve citizens and create a festive atmosphere. The municipality is dressed up with decorations on streets, roundabouts, and public buildings, while proposals such as the cycling route «Pedalea con La Vuelta», which is celebrated this Saturday, seek to involve all audiences and promote sports.
CALL TO NEIGHBORHOOD PARTICIPATION
The Council encourages all residents and visitors to fill the streets, experience the atmosphere of the race, and participate in a unique event in the history of Poio. “We have an unrepeatable opportunity ahead of us to show the world the charms of Poio. The interest and expectation that is awakening in the neighborhood is very great, and we want this Monday and Tuesday to be a real party for everyone,” he adds.
From Poio, La Vuelta can be experienced in the Praza da Chousa, on the Redeiras promenade, and in the Port of Combarro, where you can see the teams and cyclists preparing, and on the PO-308, between Combarro and A Barca, to enjoy the passage of the peloton and the festive atmosphere of the advertising caravan.