By Grace Kostrzebski
Pope Leo XIV recently welcomed cyclists racing the Giro d’Italia into Vatican City with a speech, saying “Cycling is very important… Thank you for everything you do, and be true role models.” The route for the race has always passed by or through the Vatican, and this year’s route passed through the Vatican gardens in honor of the late Pope Francis.
The connections between the papacy and bicycling began more than a century ago – not long after the popularity of bicycles peaked in the early twentieth century.
Pius X (1903-1914) became the first Pope to bless a cycling race – albeit a relatively minor amateur one. The former Pope saw sport as an avenue to connect with young people who enjoyed recreation and built communities around youth amateur sports clubs. In fact, the Giro d’Italia was first organized in 1909 with his blessing. His successors continued to bless these minor local races. Eventually, the papacy branched out from blessing these amateur races.
Many popes publicly endorsed major national cycling races. Madonna del Ghisallo in northern Italy is a hill named after an apparition of the Virgin Mary; it happens to be on the route for the Giro di Lombardia and intermittently appears on the route of the Giro d’Italia – known as the Ghisallo Pass on these routes. Many cyclists biking these routes often naturally stopped to rest on top of this hill and consequently by the church. Pius XII (1939-1958) confirmed La Madonna del Ghisallo as the patroness of cyclists in 1948 after the church became an icon in local cycling communities. As of today, the church contains a small museum of cycling history, and an eternal flame lit for all the cyclists who have passed.
More recent popes expressed support for cycling as a sport, form of exercise, and means of transportation. Paul VI (1963-1978) talked of the love for cycling he had developed in childhood – culminating in his speech to the cyclists undertaking the Giro d’Italia in 1964. Pope John Paul II (1978-2005) named and supported a cycling team, Amore e Vita, which offered spots to cyclists who sought redemption after admitting to doping violations. Recently, the late Pope Francis (2013-2025) was also a supporter of cycling – having been gifted the bike and blessed the jersey of the winner of the 2021 Giro d’Italia.
Pope Paul VI and 4 time winner Eddy Merckx in 1974
The papacy and cycling share an interesting linguistic connection. The most important venue for important statements by the pope – the encyclical – shares the same etymology as the word bicycle. Both are derived from the Greek word “enkyklios” meaning “in a circle.” “Bicycle” is “two circles” and an “encyclical” is a message circulated among Church leaders, the faithful, and the broader public. The connections between popes and cycling thus extend from linguistic origins to advocacy for healthy exercise to endorsement of major national races.
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