Turkish Cycling Federation President Emin Müftüoğlu emphasized the growing significance of the Tour of Antalya for the city, noting its fifth edition continued to expand its influence.
"The event is becoming a crucial brand for the city. This brand is essential for our country to achieve its tourism goals. The city's contribution to this event is significant, and I want to extend my gratitude to everyone involved, such as Haydar Barut and Aydın Ayhan Güney," Müftüoğlu said.
Reflecting on this year's Tour of Antalya, which began on Thursday, he highlighted the participation of two World Tour teams as a sign of the event's importance.
"This indicates a significant emergence of Antalya as a brand. The Tour of Antalya will continue to grow, aiming to become one of the world's most important brands. The level of the participating teams demonstrates the true potential of this event," he said.
Müftüoğlu also noted the federation's significant achievements, especially in collaboration with Youth and Sports Minister Osman Aşkın Bak.
"Last year, we won two medals. Until then, we had never won a medal in Europe. We now have four professional teams. Until 2010, we had no professional teams," Müftüoğlu said.
Regarding Türkiye's cycling events, Müftüoğlu emphasized: "The Tour of Antalya promotes cycling at the grassroots level and encourages the public to embrace cycling. We have completed 100 years as a federation. We are starting the new century on a significant note. Until 2008, there was no event in the Antalya category in our country. Now, we organize two races in this category, opening the season with the Tour of Antalya and closing it with the Istanbul Tour of Cycling. As the Turkish Cycling Federation, we have set new goals in line with our president's 100th-anniversary vision. We are making a significant start toward these goals. Last year, the 100th Anniversary Republic Cycling Tour and the Presidential Cycling Tour were held under the auspices of our president. I thank our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for providing the necessary instructions on the path to becoming a cycling country."
Discussing the federation's Olympic ambitions, Müftüoğlu said: "This year, we are heading to the Olympics. We have set new goals at the Velodrome. We are forming a team with junior category athletes and foreign coaches, creating a team that has not existed for years. We are already starting the journey toward the 2028 Olympics. After many years, we aim to compete in the 2028 Olympic Games at the Velodrome."
