Women All Around The World Celebrate The Joy Of Cycling And Reclaim Public Space

On September 18th,2022 more than 200 cities around the world including Istanbul, Paris, Vancouver, Berlin and London will host the most vivid women created event for the 9th time in a row.

What started as a casual bike ride (Süslü Kadınlar Bisiklet Turu in Turkish) among close friends in 2013 has evolved into a big movement in a record amount of time, the cause behind the movement being validated by women around the world from various social and economic backgrounds: providing women the opportunity to be visible in the society and allowing them to show their true colours as well as raising awareness to create safe bike routes in cities.

The Fancy Women Bike Ride was initiated by Sema Gür & Pinar Pinzuti whose goal was to challenge the male-dominated cycling world in Turkey in 2013. Since then the “Fancy Women Bike Ride” takes place every year in late September.

Fancy Women Bike Ride expanded to more than hundred cities after a few years following its launch in 2013. Volunteers all around the world showed their support by organizing all women bike rides simultaneously. In 2022 Fancy Women Bike Ride will celebrate its 10th anniversary with more than thousands of women joining in with their fancy outfits and decorated bikes in a total of 200 cities all over the world.

Sema Gur and Pinar Pinzuti received the 2022 Special Award World Bicycle Day of the United Nations for their leadership and excellence in promoting cycling for all. The initiative has been recognized and awarded by the German Ministry of Environment as a best practice for the "Gender-equitable mobility" as it takes gender equality into account in its implementation.

Women in 200 cities reclaim the streets

“The women’s bike ride is successful because the event welcomes everyone, the message is clear and it is organized by intrepid and independent women.” says the coordinator of the Fancy Women Bike Ride, Pinar Pinzuti.

The event is organized by women who are enthusiastic about convincing their peers to cycle every day. Organizers want to create awareness to increase safety on roads, create urban cycling infrastructure and plan bike-friendly services.

Although the event itself is held once a year, women peer-to-peer initiatives continue all year around. Women organize cycling courses in their communities, group rides for the weekends and cycling events for families with small children.

“The Fancy Women Bike Ride is an opportunity to experience the soft power of femininity on the streets where women boldly exhibit their inner colors on their bikes. Once a year we offer people a chance to leave their cars yet look fabulous all the same, on their bikes. If you enjoy cycling at this event, you probably keep on cycling every single day” Pinar Pinzuti explains the efforts behind FWBR in a nutshell.

This beautiful and colourful ride in the world arrives in Auckland on Sunday, September 18th. It's called Auckland Fancy Women Bike Ride.

More information can be found on the international website: www.fancywomenbikeride.com

The event details can be located here - https://fb.me/e/1E4Pcn4hU

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AucklandFancyWomenBikeRide

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auckland_fwbr/

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