The International Tour of Hellas is a road bicycle racing stage race. It consists of five stages and is usually held between April and May. The race was first held in 1968 as the ''Antiquities Trophy'', and was later known as the ''Tour of Hellas (or Greece)''. The race was held sporadically from 1968 until 2012. The

Union Cycliste Internationale The ''Union Cycliste Internationale'' (UCI; ; en, International Cycling Union) is the world governing body for sports cycling and oversees international competitive cycling events. The UCI is based in Aigle, Switzerland. The UCI issues raci ...

(UCI) made the race part of the

UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to expand cycling around the world. The five circuits (representing the continents of Africa, the ...

in 2005; the race had previously been held as an amateur event. The race was revived in 2022 as a category

2.1 The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the world's governing body in the sport of bicycle racing, classifies races according to a rating scale. The rating is represented by a code made of two or three parts and indicates both the type or style ...

event on the UCI Europe Tour. ''Cycling Greece'' is the organizing committee for the race in collaboration with the Hellenic Cycling Federation and the local authorities of the hosting cities.

History

Nikos Kapsokefalos envisioned the organization of the first Tour of Hellas, drawing inspiration from the popularity of the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

and the Giro d'Italia at the time. The first edition of the race was held in 1968, and was known as the ''Tour of Ancient Monuments''. The first stage was held on 7 October, covering from

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

to Delphi, and the first overall winner was Danish rider Gerhard Nielsen. The second edition was held in 1981, 13 years after the first edition. That year, Greek riders completed a podium sweep, with

Kanellos Kanellopoulos Kanellos Kanellopoulos (born 25 April 1957) is a Greek former cyclist. He competed in the individual road race event at the 1984 Summer Olympics. He was also the pilot and human engine for the 1988 MIT Daedalus project, completing the 72.4&nbs ...

(PO Patras) becoming the first Greek cyclist to win the race. After several problems, the race, now known as the ''Tour of Hellas'', returned in 2002. The race went on its most recent hiatus after 2012 due to a lack of financial resources and sponsors. On 13 December 2021, , the Greek Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports, announced that the race, which was rebranded as the ''International Tour of Hellas'', would return in 2022.

Past winners

Sources:

Wins per country

References

External links

* {{official website, https://www.hellas-tour.gr/ Cycle races in Greece Recurring sporting events established in 1968 UCI Europe Tour races 1968 establishments in Greece