Last Wednesday (24), according to a report carried out by the BBC, Ireland withdrew its initial expression of interest in hosting the Tour de France Grand Départ in 2026 and 2027 due to reduced financing, increased interest and lack of clarity about future spending.
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“Unfortunately, due to funding reductions this year and the lack of certainty about the budgetary position in future years, the Department for the Economy had to make the decision that it could not progress towards developing a feasibility study for the application of all the islands to host the Tour de France, Le Grand Départ in 2026 and 2027,” said the statement provided in the report.
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Previously, the initial request had been made by the race organizer, the company Amaury Sport Organization, by the Irish Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sports and Media, Catherine Martin, and by the Minister for the Economy of Northern Ireland, Gordon Lyons.
After the demonstration, Thomas Byrne, Irish minister for sports, stated that together with his team he began to analyze in detail the possibility of hosting the competition in the country. However, in July 2023, it was communicated with a notification that the investigations had been interrupted.
“Should the opportunity arise again to consider a bid to host the Grand Départ, whether jointly or individually, the experience gained in the process outlined above will be useful for any future application,” said Thomas Byrne. Even going back on the decision, Ireland stated that the Department of Economy does not rule out the possibility of a future evaluation.