The first stage runs along a rather hilly route – through wide-ranging hills and unspoiled nature, typical for the Lubelskie region countryside, for a total of 200 km of racing and about 1700 m elevation gain. The finish line was set in the beautiful scenery, on the square in the historic center of Chełm.
Czesław Lang about stage 1 Lublin – Chełm (216km): “As for the first stage, it will be technically difficult. It includes some tricky climbs and descents, but the difficulty is compensated by the beautiful scenery”
On the Tour de Pologne website, we can read: “The idea of organizing a national cycling race came shortly after Poland regained its independence in 1918. The sport was an extremely important element in shaping the attitudes of the Second Republic, and cycling was very helpful in that process. The cycling peloton goes out to the people, visits their cities, towns, and villages. It is within arm’s reach for anyone who wants to go out on the street and watch the struggles of the athletes. This idea of cycling races became a solid fact thanks to the efforts of the Warsaw Cyclists’ Association, and the editorial staff of Przegląd Sportowy (Sports Review). In 1928, exactly a quarter of a century after the launch of the famous Tour de France, the first Cycling Race around Poland was held. The importance of that event can be seen in the fact that the honorary patron of the race was the President of the Second Republic Ignacy Mościcki, and the President of the Honorary Committee was Marshal Józef Piłsudski”.
The Tour de Pologne is a road bicycle racing stage race. The race consists of seven or eight stages and is usually around 1,200 km in length. On September 7th, 1928 (the first race) a total of 71 riders set off from the Dynasy track in Warsaw. The 1,491-kilometer route was divided into eight stages. The cyclists visited among other places Lublin, Lvov, Rzeszów, Kraków, Poznań and Łódź, finally returning to the capital. Until 1952 the race was held sporadically, but since then it has been an annual race.