What is it all about?
This charity cycle tour was launched in 2017 on the initiative of several schools in the Don Bosco network in Belgium. Whilst the core principles of the project have remained the same over the years (sport, solidarity and links between Don Bosco schools), the format has evolved over time: between 2017 and 2022, the routes connected various locations across Belgium. In 2024, the year of the Olympic Games in Paris, participants set off from the Atomium to the Eiffel Tower. And this year, they are preparing to set off for Turin, for a return to the roots of Don Bosco.
How will it all unfold?
On Monday 20 April, the whole team (young cyclists, teachers and volunteers, cyclists and support staff, accompanied by two Salesian brothers cycling alongside and a support staff member) set off on a two-week journey divided into ten stages of around 100 kilometres each.
Thibaut Guelton, PE teacher at Don Bosco Tournai and project coordinator, explains: “The idea is to build a sense of family. Over the course of 15 days, the aim is to ensure everyone feels supported, especially during difficult moments. As soon as the young people arrive this Sunday evening, there will be time to get to know one another and to draft a ‘charter of life’ together. ”
He continues: “Every morning, before setting off, we plan a ‘word of the day’ inspired by the teachings of John Bosco, with key words such as trust, gentleness and affection, which will be used to provide a morning boost lasting no more than 3–4 minutes. And in the evening, depending on how the group is feeling, we’ll round off the day in a more relaxed way – with board games, for example – we’ll review the day that’s just passed and prepare for the next one.”
To ensure all these young people can regularly recharge their batteries, a support team is accompanying the DB Tour and giving their all.
And after the effort comes the reward: on arrival in Turin, participants will have the pleasure of visiting the city, as well as, of course, Valdocco, the place where Don Bosco developed his work, and of enjoying a lively game of football with the young people from the Salesian Oratory.
The Don Bosco Tour in figures:
– 1,026 km covered between Farnières and Turin
– 6 countries crossed: Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy
– 60 participants, including 33 young people, 19 adult cyclists, 8 support staff
– 134 km: the longest single stretch, between Landser (Haut-Rhin) and Beromünster (Switzerland)
