Cristiano Ronaldo arrived in Saudi Arabia? Cycling too. With the Saudi Tour, the ultra-conservative kingdom is betting, like other Gulf countries, on cycling to diversify its economy and smooth its image with colossal means.
Organized this week in the region of Al-Ula, a spectacular maze of canyons and rocky peaks in the northwest of the country, the Saudi Tour opens the trilogy of stage races in the Arabian Peninsula which will continue in February with the Tour d 'Oman and the UAE Tour in the United Arab Emirates.
Around Al-Ula, in an area the size of Belgium, there are UNESCO World Heritage archaeological sites like Hegra, the "Saudi Petra", frolicking camels, lots of sand and very little audience.
The field for this third-level race is also modest with, as gondola heads, the Dutch sprinter Dylan Groenewegen, winner of five stages of the Tour de France, and the German veteran John Degenkolb, winner of Paris-Roubaix and Milan-San Remo, paraded like demigods at all presentations.
Monday, for the first stage inevitably won by Groenewegen, there were only a few dozen onlookers, including a few women, to gather around the finish line drawn in the oasis of Khaybar.
The main thing is elsewhere: the race is part of a global strategy, shared by several neighboring States, which, under the often critical gaze of the West, have made sport a vector of "soft power" and diversification of their economy based on fossil fuels.
It materializes through the recruitment of football stars like Ronaldo, investment in teams and the organization of major events such as the World Cup in Qatar, while perhaps one day awaiting the Olympic Games.
Cycling is no exception. In addition to the races, three of the eighteen World Tour teams now have a Gulf country as a major partner: the powerful Team UAE of Tadej Pogacar, two-time Tour winner, Bahrain-Victorious, and... Al-Ula who carried its investment of seven million dollars a year to become co-title sponsor of the Australian team Jayco (ex-BikeExchange).
"This is part of our strategy to make Al-Ula the capital of cycling in Saudi Arabia and even the Middle East," said Philip Jones, in charge of the destination for the Royal Commission for Al-Ula ( RCU), created in 2017.
While the oil monarchy opened its borders to foreign visitors only four years ago, the idea is to develop in Al-Ula, strategically placed on the old incense route, high-end tourism - "above all not tall buildings, we want sustainable and responsible tourism," insists Mr. Jones - in luxurious lodges nestled in the heart of the canyons.
In this region with a rich archaeological heritage that is still largely unexplored, the RCU intends in particular to soon offer stays for cyclists during the high season, between October and March, before the heat of summer.
This project is part of the pharaonic "Vision 2030" development plan launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which plans to invest between 50 and 100 billion dollars throughout the country.
So, all means are good to impress, as during the opening ceremony which summoned some 650 drones above the emblematic rock of Elephant Rock on Sunday evening. For a mind-blowing show, worthy of a planetary event, while the Saudi Tour remains a rather confidential race.
While human rights defenders denounce "sports washing", this excess of resources also causes some tension within the peloton.
"World cycling requires more and more investment with finances coming from the Emirates or Saudi Arabia. We have to find resources to cope," says the general manager of the French team AG2R-Citroën Vincent Lavenu.
The runners, on the other hand, walk on eggshells, like John Degenkolb who belongs to the Dutch DSM team. "We are part of a system and it is not easy to refuse the proposals. The runners benefit from it but I think that the region here too", underlines the German with AFP.
Groenewegen also first remembers the "stunning scenery" and "kids' enthusiasm" when they got to touch his bike during a visit to the old town of Alula.
The organizers of Amaury Sport Organization (ASO) say they want to "continue to develop cycling in the region" and are already considering the creation of a women's Saudi Tour, while the UAE Tour offers such a variation this year. .
02/01/2023 16:39:03 - Al-Ula (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) - © 2023 AFP
