Cycling: Ultramarathon runner Tiago Cação will pass through the 16 municipalities of the Algarve to change urban mobility

Ultramarathon cyclist Tiago Cação will begin next Monday, June 2nd, at 9:00 am, the Project 278 , a 6,000 kilometer (km) cycling tour of Portugal that will end in Lisbon at the end of the month, after passing through all 278 municipalities in mainland Portugal.

In the district of Faro, Tiago Cação will pass through Monchique and Aljezur next Friday, June 13. On the 14th, the route will begin in Vila do Bispo and will pass through Lagos, Portimão, Silves, Lagoa, Albufeira, Loulé, São Brás de Alportel, Faro, Olhão, Tavira and Vila Real de Santo António (VRSA).

Tiago Cação's visit to the Faro district will end on the 15th, when he will pass through Castro Marim and Alcoutim. In all these municipalities, Tiago Cação will deliver a letter to the local authorities calling for a profound redefinition of urban mobility.

Before, on the morning of the 2nd, Tiago Cação will deliver the first manifesto to the Councilor of the Porto City Council, Catarina Araújo, who is responsible for Quality of Life.

In this symbolic moment, Tiago Cação will be accompanied by the president of the Portuguese Cycling Federation, Cândido Barbosa, the president of MUBI – Association for Urban Mobility by Bicycle, Vera Diogo, and the CEO of Greenvolt Communities, José Queirós de Almeida.

Project can be followed online

With the daily goal of traveling around 240 km throughout the month of June, Tiago Cação will try to raise awareness among City Councils, before this year's local elections, about the need for a paradigm shift in urban and mobility policies, prioritizing sustainability, health, safety and the quality of life of the population.

Urban centers are currently responsible for 70% of greenhouse gas emissions and road transport is identified as the main cause of air pollution in cities. With Project 278 , Tiago Cação aims to advocate for more active mobility, suggesting the inclusion of the bicycle at the top of the mobility pyramid, proposing priority steps to achieve this goal.

Project 278 also has a strong focus on tourism promotion, as during his trip Tiago Cação will seek to demonstrate that Portugal is a reference destination for cycling tourism and sustainable tourism.

Throughout the duration of the initiative, audiovisual content will be produced to give visibility to the landscape, heritage and cultural diversity of our country, both in urban areas and in rural areas, with less population density.

Project 278 will also be accompanied by the multi-award-winning Belgian director Ryan Le Garrec, known for his works on cycling and ultramarathon running, who will make a documentary about the initiative.

Project 278 has the High Patronage of the President of the Republic and the institutional support of the National Association of Municipalities, the Portuguese Cycling Federation, MUBI, the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT), the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICFN) and ABIMOTA.

Greenvolt Comunidades and Sociedade Ponto Verde are the sponsors. The initiative also has partnerships with Bikezone, Decathlon, Geonatlife, Sponser Sport Foods, Catlike, Biolectra Magnesium and Panvitol da Azevedos and Topcycling.pt.

About Tiago Shark

Born in Montemor-o-Velho in 1983. He has a degree in Tourism and attended the Marketing course at ISCA. He works in the music industry and is a photographer, producer and travel writer out of passion. He produced and directed the documentary Horizontes, currently available on RTP PLAY.

He is an ultramarathon cyclist, having competed in the Biking Man World Championship in 2019 and 2021, finishing in 29th and 12th place, respectively. He qualified for the Race Across America, the most difficult race in the world, and is the only Portuguese to have completed the nine islands of the Azores in nine consecutive days.

He often dedicates himself to social causes. In April 2020, he took part in a charity tour of Portugal. He covered 2,000 km in seven days and collected two tons of food for the Audiovisual Union. Also in October 2020, with the support of Rádio Comercial, he traveled the National 2 highway in 27 hours, raising more than 8 thousand euros through crowdfunding , an amount that was converted into food aid for professionals in the cultural sector experiencing financial difficulties due to the pandemic.