IGORRE
Locality making part of the Biscay Province -Euskal Herria (Basque Country)- at 22 km from Bilbao, Northern Spain most important town.
Igorre is the geographical centre of the Arratia valley, with a rural environment, on the edge of the Urkiola and Gorbea natural parks. Its population reaches 4000 inhabitants (1999), whose main activity is based upon industry. In the area of Intxaur Bizkar, that belong to the municipalities of Igorre and Dima, we can see the little district of Elgueza where the Santa Lucia hermitage was built in the eleventh century. Saint Kristobal was worshipped in it.
People were so devoted to the Saint that the place took his name and that it is known as the San Kristobal district of Igorre although its official name is still Santa Lucia.
The feast committee here named INTXAUR BIZKAR KULTUR ELKARTEA, organised in July a cycling race fur junior riders: the Subida a San Kristobal. Because of some problems with the asphalt of the road and as a consequence the denial of the traffic prefecture, the committee -on S.C. AMOREBIETA president Marcos Gerediaga's suggestion- accepted to organise in 1977 the first "Ziklo Kross San Kristobal de Igorre". Since 1979 the municipality partly sponsors the race that is now just called ZIKLO KROSS IGORRE.
Cycling fans coming from different localities of Arratia, especially thanks to the impact of the ZIKLO KROSS IGORRE, created in 1980 the ARRATIAKO ZIKLISTA ELKARTEA. The society, with the help of the Intxaurbizkar association, took on the responsibility of organising the race in the following years. The San Kristobal circuit- the cathedral of cyclo-cross- is situated at three km from downtown.
It is a very special circuit because the spectators can gaze at it in its entirety from any point. It was the setting of 17 editions. In '93 Igorre organised a World Cup event. It was decided to organise the race on the Olabarri circuit, a maybe not so spectacular one, but with the advantage of being situated downtown and having a better infrastructure at its disposal.
The little San Kristobal district gave it life and helped it to grow. Igorre gave it its name and is watching over its future that currently is in Olabarri.