French rider Paul Magnier wins first stage of Giro d’Italia in Bulgaria

Burgas gave a festive welcome to the finishers of the opening stage of the Giro d’Italia - the 147-kilometre route from Nessebar to Burgas.

The winner of the first stage was French cyclist Paul Magnier, who described the victory as a tremendous achievement in his career - his first triumph in such a major race.

The final metres of the stage were marked by a crash involving several riders in succession along a narrow section shortly before the finish line.

The 109th edition of the Giro d’Italia officially began today at 1:50 p.m. with a ceremony held near the yacht marina in Nessebar’s Old Town. Thousands of spectators from across the world – including Colombia, Uruguay, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, the Netherlands and Belgium – gathered to support the participants.

A total of 184 cyclists from 23 teams are competing for the race’s four prestigious jerseys: the pink jersey for the overall leader of the Giro d’Italia; the cyclamen jersey for the points classification leader; the blue jersey for the best climber; and the white jersey for the best young rider. Ahead of them lie an epic 3,468 kilometres, with the first 543 kilometres taking place on Bulgarian territory.

Thousands of spectators from around the world gathered to cheer on the riders, who were introduced one by one on a specially constructed stage before the start of the race.

Edited by Miglena Ivanova