Publication date: 04/06/15
ThemesNews
On Wednesday, 3 June, the University of Strasbourg hosted the first leg of the 2015 Tour Eucor. For this 18th edition linking the universities of the European campus, 120 students and teachers from France, Germany and Switzerland are riding their bikes together.
On Tuesday 2 June, 120 cyclists took part in the trinational cycle tour of the Upper Rhine universities, which started in Karlsruhe. For five days, the participants will cross the Upper Rhine area, stopping at a different Eucor member university’s every day. The University of Strasbourg was the first stage of the tour yesterday: the participants stopped for the night before taking the road to Mulhouse early in the morning. They will travel 700km to reach each of the five Eucor universities (Universities of Freiburg, Basel, Strasbourg, University of Haute Alsace and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology). Students, staff members as well as alumni are taking part in the journey.
“Through a sport challenge, the Tour Eucor aims to form bonds of friendship between participants from the three countries. It is a concrete embodiment of both Eucor and Europe’s ideals,” Benjamin Litz, a member of the organising team, explained. Each cyclist can choose his own pace, the distance he wants to cover and the level of difficulty, depending on his sport level. The tour allows participants to ride on the slopes of the Vosges mountains and the Black Forest or to cycle comfortably along the banks of the Rhine: “the important thing is to enjoy it!” Benjamin Litz adds.
This year, the tour will take the cyclists from the Alsace wine route to the Kaiserstuhl (Baden-Württemberg) via the Platzerwasel and Scheltenpass mountain passes and the Schluchsee lake. A team composed of 14 student volunteers is taking care of supplies and equipment problems. The final and longest stage will take place on Sunday, 7 June between Freiburg and Karlsruhe and will end with a closing celebration in the evening.
Tour Eucor 2015: a few facts and figures
Eucor stands for “European Confederation of Upper Rhine Universities". Founded in 1989, this trinational alliance of five universities in France, Germany and Switzerland aims at promoting cooperation in education, research, administration, and cultural as well as sporting activities. Eucor's flagship project is the European Campus, which aims to expand the alliance into an internationally attractive center for science and research. Planned concrete measures include the joint appointment of professors, the joint hiring of staff, funding for joint research projects, and the establishment of more integrated degree programs.
- 120 participants
- around 85 000 kilometres travelled
- 7 escort vehicles and 14 student volunteers
- 12 organisers
- 65 kilos of pasta, 30 kilos of rice, 65 kilos of meat, 40 kilos of onions, 2 500 litres of water, 45 kilos of tea powder, 1 260 effervescent tablets, 2 344 muesli bars, 65 kilos of bananas, 60 kilos of apples, 70 cakes.
- More information on the Tour Eucor website
- Contact : Benjamin Litz, Tour Eucor press agent (tel.: +49 170 601 2001) - Eucor organisaton in Strasbourg : presse@eucor-uni.de.
Eucor stands for “European Confederation of Upper Rhine Universities". Founded in 1989, this trinational alliance of five universities in France, Germany and Switzerland aims at promoting cooperation in education, research, administration, and cultural as well as sporting activities. Eucor's flagship project is the European Campus, which aims to expand the alliance into an internationally attractive center for science and research. Planned concrete measures include the joint appointment of professors, the joint hiring of staff, funding for joint research projects, and the establishment of more integrated degree programs.
