The 12 kilometres ride took place from the Sunkar International Ski Jumping Complex to the Almaty Central Stadium, home of Kazakhstan's national football team and which will host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies if they are awarded the 2022 Olympics and Paralympics.

Big crowds lined the route to cheer on the cyclists, who were led by the London 2012 Olympic road race champion Alexander Vinokouro and Vice-Mayor of Almaty Zauresh Amanzholova.

They were joined by professional cyclists Fabio Aru, thrid in last month's Giro d'Italia, and Paolo Tiralongo, members of International Cycling Union ProTeam Astana.

Kazakhstan's Olympic road road champion Alexander Vinokouro was among those who took part in the bike ride to help show their support for Almaty's bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics ©Almaty 2022

Kazakhstan Paralympians, ambassadors of the bid, volunteers, celebrities, Almaty citizens and guests completed the field. 

At the finish, the Almaty 2022 Bid Committee and ambassadors of the bid awarded prizes and gifts to the winners and participants.

The event was held to coincide with the International Olympic Committee's ruling Executive Board meeting in Lausanne on July 7 to select which cities should go through to the next stage of the 2022 campaign, where Beijing, Lviv and Oslo will also be hoping to be selected.

Paralympians were among local residents who took to the streets of Almaty to show their support for the city's bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics ©Almaty 2022

"First of course we have to be selected by the IOC as Candidate City in beginning of July," said Amanzholova.

"But allow me to have a look beyond this date, to speak about the future, our hope.

"The Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games 2022 would be a real booster for the development of economic and tourist potential of the city. 

"We already improved a lot in the past years what our residents positively recognise.

"Our goal is to become an even more modern city, with the latest technologies to have the best environmental conditions, with an education and sport system as a means to create a healthy lifestyle for future generations and creating a city residents are proud of.

"It is a long way and we just can do it step by step, but we see more than positive signs of acceptance.

"And events like the Winter Universiade  2017 or potential Winter Olympics in 2022 will not just accelerate improvements in infrastructure but give people a goal, something they can support and take part in, like the bike race today showed."

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