HAIKOU /China/, October 5. /TASS/. The 14th Tour of Hainan International Road Cycling Race will be held in the southern Chinese province of Hainan on October 5 to 9, China News Service reported.
The opening ceremony of the race was held on October 4 in Qionghai city in the east of the island, according to the report.
Twenty professional teams from around the world are taking part in this year's race. The race will span over 781.1 kilometers and will include five stages that run along both coastal tourist routes and the island's tropical parks.
The race started in the city of Qionghai and will end in the resort city of Sanya in the south of the province. The total prize fund of the event is $300 thousand.
The Chinese province has been hosting the Tour of Hainan since 2006. Russian participants Sergey Kolesnikov and Boris Shpilevsky have won the competition twice in 2006 and in 2008 respectively.
The previous competition was held in late 2018, with Italy's Fausto Masnada taking the title, followed by Switzerland's Gino Meder in second place and France's Julien El Fares in third.