Tour of Eritrea

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Tour of Eritrea

Bicyclists competing in the Tour of Eritrea in Asmara, Eritrea.
Race details
Date	February 9 to February 16 (2007)
Region	Eritrea
English name	Tour of Eritrea
Local name(s)	ዙር ኤርትራ (Tigrinya)
Discipline	Road race
Type	Multi-stage
Organiser	Eritrean National Cycling Federation
Race director	Aklilu Lijam
History
First edition	1946
Editions	8
Most wins	Habte Weldesimon 3 times
Most recent	Merhawi Ghebrehiwot

The Tour of Eritrea (also, Italian: Giro d'Eritrea Tigrinya: ዙር ኤርትራ) is a multiday, bicycle race held throughout Eritrea. The first race was held in 1946. In 2001 after a fifty-five year long hiatus, the Tour was resurrected.

Though since the Colonial period the route has changed, today it is a 700 mile race contended in 10 stages.^[1] The race covers various geographic regions, including the desert lowlands, the chilly highlands and windy coast.^[2]

[edit] Jersey

During the Tour, the previous stage's winner is awarded a blue jersey in recognition of their achievement.^[3] A red jersey is awarded to those who win the climbing contest while the yellow jersey is worn by the overall Tour leader.^[4]

[edit] Tour winners

Tour of Eritrea Winners

1946
2001		Habte Weldesimon
2002		Michael Tekle
2003		Habte Weldesimon
2004		Habte Weldesimon
2005		Michael Teku
2006		Michael Misgane
2007		Merhawi Ghebrehiwot
2008		Merhawi Ghebrehiwot

[edit] References

1. ^ "Riders on the sandstorm", The Observer, 2006-07-30. Retrieved on 2006-12-19. 
2. ^ Corso, a Life Line of Asmarino Youths. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
3. ^ Andemichael, Daniel. "Abraham Belay Dons Blue Jersey as He Sets a New Record in Winning Latest Stage", 2007-02-14. Retrieved on 2007-02-14. 
4. ^ Summary of Tour De Eritrea: EriTel wins Fifth Consecutive Victory. Retrieved on 2007-03-12.