Participants and fans at the 76th Tour de Pologne were unexpectedly cast into mourning yesterday as Belgian cyclist Bjorg Lambrecht died following a crash in the third stage of the competition.
The rider was taken to hospital by helicopter yesterday afternoon following a crash about 60 miles from the finish line. It was announced later that the had died during an operation. He was 22 years old. No other riders are believed to have been injured and organisers have decided to continue with the competition.
Thousands take part in pilgrimages to Jasna Gora
Thousands of christians from around Poland and the world are making their way on an annual pilgrimage to Poland’s most holy site. The hilltop monastery of Jasna Gora, located just outside the city of Częstochowa in southern Poland, is a place of enormous importance in Polish Catholicism and has been a site of pilgrimage since the Middle Ages. Founded in 1382, the monastery is home to Poland’s most sacred relic, an icon of the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child known as „The Black Madonna of Częstochowa.” Every year, thousands of devout pilgrims make the journey from every corner of Poland, many of them walking for several days to reach the monastery.
ZE PAK owner calls for move towards green energy
The owner of one of Poland’s largest energy suppliers has called for Poland to shift away from fossil fuels towards renewable power sources. Zygmund Solorz, the Polish billionaire owner of major electricity and communications businesses, said yesterday that he would invest in clean energy production in Poland, according to reports from Reuters news agency. Solorz owns a number of coal-fired power plants in central Poland in addition to telecommunications company Polsat. Environmental changes have already been made at Solorz’s owned businesses and the billionaire has announced plans for a ‘Clean Poland Programme’ to promote air quality improvement throughout Poland.
Source: Reuters, Bloomberg
PiS leads strongly in election polls
Early polling for Poland’s upcoming election is showing a strong lead for the ruling Law and Justice party. Politico Research’s aggregate of polls puts Law and Justice at 47%, far ahead of second place Civic Platform on 26%. The polls are welcome news for the governing party which has been looking to sway more urban and liberal voters to its cause in an attempt to expand its majority in parliament. Some experts put the party’s strong performance down to a unified and consolidated right wing vote against a fragmented and spread out Opposition.
Source: Politico
New flights between Gdańsk and the UK
Direct flights between Gdansk and Edinburgh are to begin from November, budget airline Wizz Air has announced. The new route will see flights every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday to and from the Scottish capital, becoming the airline’s sixth UK city with direct services to Gdansk.
Source: Wizzair
Blueberry production up by half
Production of blueberries in Poland increased by 55% in 2018 compared with 2017, Poland In reports. A total of 14,800 tons of the fruit was harvested last year, the majority of which went to EU countries, mainly Germany, the UK, and the Netherlands. Poland is now second in Europe, behind only Spain.
Weather
The outlook for Tuesday’s weather: feeling warm today, with temperatures in the mid to high twenties, that’s the 70s and 80s fahrenheit. Mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain and thunderstorms into the afternoon.
TH/RGEN NEWS
