The Turkish President has taken the country’s cycling revolution into his own hands at the 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey, where he said that bikes should be cheaper and infrastructure should be improved across the country.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke in Istanbul, where he said that in Turkey the bike was not yet cherished as a mode of transport.
"Unlike many other countries in the world, especially Western countries, we could not endear bicycles yet," the president said, according to Daily Sabah.
He added that Turkish provinces like Konya had taken good steps for establishing good infrastructure in recent times, and said he hoped this would spread to Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir as well.
He also promoted the bicycle as healthy exercise but said: "If producers [of bicycles] make the prices affordable, then its consumption would be much more different," he said, as he sped along a 1 km track on a custom-made bike by Turkish producer Salcano, leaving his bodyguards in dark suits racing behind on foot.
The bicycle featured the presidential logo as well as Erdoğan’s name.
Erdoğan and ministers and other officials who accompanied him for the ride, were originally expected to cycle for two kilometers – but the president used his official car to return to the start point.
The 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey will start in Alanya on April 26 and end in Istanbul on May 3.
10 thoughts on “Get on your bike – it’s healthy, says Turkish President… then jumps in his car after 1km on custom made bike”
Hmmm, good on him but he’ll
Hmmm, good on him but he’ll have to do something about providing proper facilities. Having driven on Turkish roads I can’t say I’d be keen to mix it with the traffic in any of the cities I’ve been to (Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir). At least Izmir has the sea front but the traffic in Istanbul in particular is utterly bonkers.
I wish there was a video clip of Erdogan pedalling of with his security staff in hot pursuit on foot. it’d be quite comical! He’s divisive figure in Turkey. Under his leadership the country’s economy has boomed but he’s been accused of turning his back on some of the founding principles of the Turkish Republic set up under Ataturk’s rule.
He also says many other
He also says many other things, such as that women will never be equal to men. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is a horrible person.
Municipal Waste wrote:He also
I think I read an article on the BBC regarding the same…but he also said in the same speech:
“You cannot make women work in the same jobs as men do, as in communist regimes. You cannot give them a shovel and tell them to do their work. This is against their delicate nature.”
Erdoğan was apparently referring to the practice during and after the second world war for women in communist states such as the USSR to do heavy manual work in factories or in roles such as tram drivers.
He complained that in previous decades in Turkey women in Anatolian villages had done the back-breaking work while their menfolk idled away the time.
“Wasn’t it the case in Anatolia? Our poor mothers suffered immensely and got hunchbacks while the men were playing cards and rolling dice at teahouses,” he said.
We don’t even have full wage equality in this country with all our civilization, I suppose give it time, things change. I suppose when there are more women than men, they will sort it out themselves 🙂
I saw one this morning, it
I saw one this morning, it was hilarious
Here it
Here it is…
http://www.todayszaman.com/national_erdogan-rides-custom-made-bicycle-bodyguards-race-on-foot-to-keep-up_378364.html
Kadinkski wrote:Here it
If I were flanked by a dozen armed security guards as I cycled, I’d probably forgo the helmet.
There’s a lot more things
There’s a lot more things @Ronin. I was lucky enough to visit Istanbul for three months this winter gone and live amongst some wonderful people who somehow manage to remain upbeat despite some pretty heinous things their Head Master* does.
*Gotta be careful what you say; using words like ‘dictator’ or ‘autocrat’ will get you a prison sentence.
Municipal Waste wrote:There’s
Did you get to do any cycling there?
Reminds me of Cameron:
Reminds me of Cameron: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4953922.stm
I have just come back from a
I have just come back from a weekend in Istanbul. A wonderful city but 30 years behind Europe in terms of urban cycling. In reality, cars always have priority over pedestrians and cyclists – regardless of any traffic lights or pedestrian crossings.
I went on a very enjoyable (although occasionally scary) bike tour with a group of hardy Dutch tourists. They explained that the key to survival is to make yourself big, point at the driver, then show the palm of your hand while shouting stop or something similar. It worked every time – although the drivers looked astonished.
The few Turkish cyclists I saw seemed rather tense – like rabbits during hunting season.