Employees at SSE Airtricity’s Great Victoria Street office are gearing up to welcome the Giro d’Italia as it passes by the central Belfast office on Friday.
More than 200 elite riders will whizz down Great Victoria Street, followed by an entourage of support vehicles, promotional floats and media, as the one of the world’s most illustrious road racing events takes centre stage in Belfast.
“The Giro is a huge sporting event and one that will be watched by people all over the world, it’s a great opportunity for us to showcase Northern Ireland” says Leanne O'Neil, SSE Airtricity’s Office Manager in Belfast.
Every second year, the organisers of the Giro d'Italia take their Big Start, overseas, and this year it's Northern Ireland's turn. The country is currently awash in pink, from shop fronts to cricket teams playing in pink, local farmers have even gone as far as dying their sheep pink in celebration of the Giro.
SSE has been involved in a number of other local sports sponsorships in Northern Ireland over the last 12 months. In November, the company was unveiled as the new sponsor of St. Matthew’s GAC in Drumsurn, Co. Derry~Londonderry, and in April SSE Airtricity revealed that it would be partnering with Red River Festival to sponsor the 125km cycle along the North West coast. SSE Airtricity has also announced that it will again be sponsoring the Walled City Marathon in Co. Derry~Londonderry, which will take place on Sunday 1st June.