Participants of the "Paris-Moscow" cycling race bid farewell to hospitable Belarus and headed for Moscow

August 19, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Participants of the fifth "Paris-Moscow" peace bike ride have bid farewell to hospitable Belarus and headed for Russia, Andrei Tsvetkov, head of the sports and tourism department of the Liozno District Executive Committee, told a BELTA correspondent today. Liozno became the last Belarusian settlement where the amateur athletes stopped. According to tradition, they were welcomed with bread and salt, treated to Belarusian national dishes, and told about the history of the heroic Liozno land. The fifth bike marathon is organized by the organization "Bicycle for Peace and New Energies" as part of the movement for peace and interaction between peoples. This year it is dedicated to the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Europe from fascism. The marathon, with a total length of over 4,000 km, started on July 4 in Paris. Its participants arrived in Belarus on August 6 from Poland and covered 942 km across the country. They visited large and small cities of the country, including Brest, Kobrin, Nesvizh, Minsk, Lepel, Vitebsk, got acquainted with Belarusians and local attractions. As noted by the coordinator of the bike ride in Belarus, Valery Rassolko, the team that traveled across the country consists of 16 people - Germans, Russians, and Belarusians. The most respected participant of the bike ride, Eckord Schneider, is 72 years old. He has been traveling since the very start. Today, three more cyclists, residents of Vitebsk, joined the marathon participants. All together they will finish in Moscow on Red Square on August 27. -0-