The opening of the Russia Cycling Marathon in Kostroma will be a vibrant sporting and cultural event.

The Russia Cycling Race is a large—scale All-Russian sports project that unites cycling enthusiasts from all over the country. The event is supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, the League of Heroes and leading sports organizations.

This year, for the first time in history, the route will pass through the cities of the Golden Ring of Russia. The competition will be held in 8 stages from May 16 to September 12 and will cover eight cities of Russia. It is more than 400 km. The estimated number of participants is over 18 thousand people.

The start of the competition will be given in the Kostroma region. This is not accidental. The Governor of the Kostroma Region, Sergey Sitnikov, defines the development of the tourist destination as one of the key drivers of the regional economy. In 2025, the Kostroma region was visited by 2.1 million tourists. The annual growth in tourist traffic is 18 percent or more. The region has been in the TOP 5 in popularity among Russian routes for several years.

The grand opening of the cycling festival will take place on the main square in Kostroma. There will be a bike ride through the historical part of the city. An excursion route "Mazai hares", a food festival with the participation of local producers and a large concert program are also planned.
The 44 km individual race will take place with a starting and ending point in Nerekhta, a city in the small Golden Ring of Russia. Guests can also visit the park "Tkatsky Dvor" and the Nerekhtsky Museum of Local Lore.

Since 2020, the number of cycling enthusiasts in the Kostroma Region has increased by a third. This is due, among other things, to the active construction and repair of roads. In recent years, more than 2,000 kilometers of the road network have been repaired in the region.

In recent years, several dozen new sports facilities have been created in the Kostroma Region as part of the presidential national projects and regional programs. Thanks to this, the number of people involved in mass sports has increased by 15% in five years. Today, this is more than two thirds of the population. The Kostroma Region is noted by the Ministry of Sports as one of the leading regions in organizing work in the field of physical education and sports.