:00:00. > :00:00.That's all from the BBC News at Six, so it's goodbye from me
:00:00. > :00:19.Good evening, the headlines on BBC Newsline...
:00:20. > :00:26.Thousands of spectators line the streets of Belfast as the Giro
:00:27. > :00:31.d'Italia begins. And the race is on - we're live at the start, middle
:00:32. > :00:34.and finish of tonight's time trial event.
:00:35. > :00:37.Also in the programme... Tributes to Oscar Knox, the little
:00:38. > :00:42.boy who became an internet sensation as he fought cancer.
:00:43. > :00:53.And it's all smiles for the camera, but just how amicable are relations
:00:54. > :00:57.at Stormont? The Giro Big Start racing has begun.
:00:58. > :01:00.The first of the three stages are taking place in Belfast right now.
:01:01. > :01:07.It's a time trial involving the 22 teams going from the Titanic Quarter
:01:08. > :01:10.to Stormont to the City Hall. Lining the route are thousands of
:01:11. > :01:14.spectators, cycling fans and people just interested in being part of the
:01:15. > :01:17.one-off event - one of the world's biggest cycling events. BBC
:01:18. > :01:22.Newsline's Mark Simpson takes us through what's been happening so
:01:23. > :01:36.far. It started with a kiss, a day in
:01:37. > :01:40.Belfast like no other. The riders were up early and so were the
:01:41. > :01:44.spectators. Roads were closed to allow the cyclists to do their stuff
:01:45. > :01:49.leaving other parts of the city looking like a ghost town. This is
:01:50. > :01:54.just after morning rush hour in the city centre. Fridays in Belfast are
:01:55. > :02:01.normally not like this, or this... Stormont changed colour. Politics
:02:02. > :02:06.and sport don't often makes but this political location worked
:02:07. > :02:09.perfectly. This is great for Northern Ireland and I hope this guy
:02:10. > :02:15.stays blue for a while. What do you think of the riders so far? They are
:02:16. > :02:20.gorgeous! They could be models! They are fabulous! You are an amateur
:02:21. > :02:26.cyclist. What do the professionals have that you do not? Talent.
:02:27. > :02:30.Physically they are very small, they are like jockeys. And they are so
:02:31. > :02:35.dedicated. They keep their weight down and they train five or six
:02:36. > :02:39.hours a day. The Giro d'Italia is a gruelling grind. It is not just a
:02:40. > :02:49.test of speed, but stamina. And these men are going to be tested to
:02:50. > :02:55.the limit over the next three weeks. They are incredibly powerful
:02:56. > :03:00.athletes, certainly a lot more toned than I was when I was riding my bike
:03:01. > :03:04.to school! And they all seemed to be relaxed, even making time for a
:03:05. > :03:08.quick stealthy before the big race. All along the route, spectators are
:03:09. > :03:15.trying something different, including here, at Queen's
:03:16. > :03:22.University. Lawyers, doctors, staff and students, all cycling as the
:03:23. > :03:26.real cyclists pedalled past. This is an incredible experience for the
:03:27. > :03:31.people of Belfast. You can see that the colour of Belfast is pink. The
:03:32. > :03:37.sun is shining and it is a wonderful experience. Just before six o'clock
:03:38. > :03:52.at Titanic slipways, the Giro d'Italia officially began. In
:03:53. > :03:56.tonight's event, the teams are riding against the clock, speeding
:03:57. > :04:02.round the streets of East and South Belfast in as quick a time as
:04:03. > :04:05.possible. The winner will be the first rider across the finishing
:04:06. > :04:10.line in the quickest team. They make it look easy - it isn't, but it sure
:04:11. > :04:13.is fun to watch. In sporting terms, this professional
:04:14. > :04:23.racing is about stamina, strength and speed. These are alive pictures
:04:24. > :04:27.of the racing at the moment. -- live pictures. Thomas Kane is at the
:04:28. > :04:33.starting point at the Titanic Belfast centre.
:04:34. > :04:38.Fantastic images from all around Belfast. Here on the Titanic
:04:39. > :04:44.Slipway, everyone of the cyclists has been cheered off the starting
:04:45. > :04:50.line as they fly past. I am joined by an expert and world champion,
:04:51. > :04:58.Wendy Hoover Nagel. You have outdoor experience. Give us a rundown of the
:04:59. > :05:04.time trial? It is a reason against the clock. We have got teams racing
:05:05. > :05:09.against other and the fastest will win the race today. Give us an idea
:05:10. > :05:14.of how much goes into the team trials, in terms of practice? People
:05:15. > :05:19.have learned a lot of things. The aim for the teams will be to get
:05:20. > :05:28.around the course as quickly and as safely as possible. Obviously, with
:05:29. > :05:33.the weather as it is, they will have been taken into consideration in
:05:34. > :05:38.terms of tactics. It is starting to rain, but when is a problem, why? It
:05:39. > :05:44.can really break up a team and affect the flow of the race. I
:05:45. > :05:52.noticed that a lot of the teams have opted to use non-deep section front
:05:53. > :05:57.wheels but kept this Queen's at the back. It will offer more control at
:05:58. > :06:03.the front. The rider at the front will not experience much twitching
:06:04. > :06:07.of the bike. You have been here all afternoon. You would love to be out
:06:08. > :06:12.there, wouldn't you? I feel it is very strange for me to be on this
:06:13. > :06:17.side of the barriers. Usually I am competing in the arena and it feels
:06:18. > :06:22.quite surreal to be on the other side today. Thank you for joining
:06:23. > :06:26.us. Once the cyclists leave here they will make their way up the new
:06:27. > :06:31.denied to road to the next major point, Stormont, and my colleague is
:06:32. > :06:35.there. The first cyclists arrived just
:06:36. > :06:42.before six o'clock this evening. We are around eight kilometres from
:06:43. > :06:46.Titanic Quarter. On average it takes around nine minutes for them to make
:06:47. > :06:51.their way here. What a welcome they have been getting. Several thousand
:06:52. > :06:56.people have lined the Avenue. This is the best spot to get a really
:06:57. > :07:02.close-up look the cyclists. That is because they have to slow down as
:07:03. > :07:05.they go up the hill and go round Carson's statue. You have got an
:07:06. > :07:09.opportunity to get a real close-up view. Earlier I spoke to people who
:07:10. > :07:17.came from all over to watch the race. Wouldn't have missed it for
:07:18. > :07:23.the world, definitely not. I booked a day off a year and a half ago when
:07:24. > :07:29.I find out they were coming, to make sure I was off work on the Friday.
:07:30. > :07:35.We have sold up bikes each. We do our cycling on the Comber Greenway.
:07:36. > :07:42.We decided not to miss it and we had to come and see it. We have been
:07:43. > :07:53.trying to get the Colombian contingent to scream. There is a
:07:54. > :07:58.cyclist from the same town as her. It is not off the world's number two
:07:59. > :08:03.by grace comes to Northern Ireland. It is not just about the cycling. It
:08:04. > :08:07.is also about a big family day out. There are all manner of things to
:08:08. > :08:11.keep people entertained. Of course, it is the cyclists that have brought
:08:12. > :08:16.people here and there is a huge cheer every time you hear a group of
:08:17. > :08:22.cyclists going past. They will be here for a while yet. We get them a
:08:23. > :08:27.ride every five minutes going up the avenue. Unfortunately, the rain
:08:28. > :08:32.arrived probably around ten or 15 minutes ago, but we are just keeping
:08:33. > :08:38.our fingers crossed and hopefully it will not get too heavy. Back to this
:08:39. > :08:42.do deal. It does not seem to be disturbing
:08:43. > :08:46.the cyclists. The idea of having the Giro's Big
:08:47. > :08:52.Start was first muted at a St Patrick's Day dinner in Washington
:08:53. > :08:55.four years ago. -- first mooted. After months of planning and
:08:56. > :08:58.investment from north and south it's finally here. We had all the
:08:59. > :09:02.publicity with the G8 summit last year now the world's media spotlight
:09:03. > :09:11.is on us yet again. Mark Simpson is at Belfast City Hall.
:09:12. > :09:16.There is an absolutely massive crowd here. I spoke to the police just
:09:17. > :09:21.before we came on air. Even they did not anticipate the crowds been quite
:09:22. > :09:25.so big. They say so far, there have been no major incidents along the
:09:26. > :09:34.route. Before we pat ourselves on the back, let's get the Italian
:09:35. > :09:39.perspective. What do you think of Giro d'Italia, Belfast style? I love
:09:40. > :09:46.it. There is lovely hospitality, warm people. The weather doesn't
:09:47. > :09:51.matter. Much more than I expected. Yesterday, at the presentation of
:09:52. > :09:58.the teams, there were lots of people like in Italy. There was the same
:09:59. > :10:02.energy, the same feeling. Thank you very much. You can thank the
:10:03. > :10:07.organisers. We will speak to one of them in the moment. Is the weather
:10:08. > :10:14.not a bit of a problem? It doesn't matter. The riders are used to
:10:15. > :10:22.everything. We had some stages in Italy in June, even in June, with
:10:23. > :10:28.snow. So last year, a stage was cancelled because of snow. So, no
:10:29. > :10:34.problem at all. Thank you, enjoy the rest of your stay. Let's talk to one
:10:35. > :10:39.of the organisers. This has all gone without a hitch? It has been an
:10:40. > :10:45.amazing day. This morning I cycled in at seven o'clock and the roads
:10:46. > :10:49.looked pristine. The practice run was good not just for the riders but
:10:50. > :10:53.for the city. It joined up all of the dots from the planning and
:10:54. > :10:57.preparation, from the police, the tourist board, the council. It is an
:10:58. > :11:04.incredible day and the crowds are amazing. It is not just cycling fans
:11:05. > :11:09.- they are probably in the minority! Everybody is here, people with an
:11:10. > :11:17.interest in sport or cycling. It has not been too bad weather wise, has
:11:18. > :11:21.a? The weather has been extraordinary. We were forecast
:11:22. > :11:24.heavy showers and we just had a sprinkling a few minutes ago but
:11:25. > :11:31.apart from that the weather has been in our favour. If we can host the
:11:32. > :11:35.Giro d'Italia? What's next? We always aspire to bigger things. Are
:11:36. > :11:42.we going to have this conversation about the Tour de France? We don't
:11:43. > :11:47.know. But we have got the Tall Ships coming next year. Remember, there
:11:48. > :11:50.are still two more days to go. To find out about when the roads are
:11:51. > :11:56.closing and re-opening tomorrow and Sunday check out the traffic website
:11:57. > :11:59.- trafficwatchni.com. Tributes have been paid to the
:12:00. > :12:08.County Antrim boy whose high profile fight against cancer captured many
:12:09. > :12:11.hearts and who has died. Oscar Knox, known as Wee Oscar became an
:12:12. > :12:16.internet and social media sensation, as Ciara Riddell reports.
:12:17. > :12:20.A little boy who captured the hearts and minds of many - Oscar Knox's
:12:21. > :12:24.short life was dominated by his condition, neuroblastoma. His
:12:25. > :12:27.journey documented on social media by his parents Stephen and Leona
:12:28. > :12:33.gathered followers from across the globe, including local sporting
:12:34. > :12:35.stars. And it was via Twitter the heartbroken family announced his
:12:36. > :12:38.death saying, "Our beautiful, amazing and much-loved son Oscar
:12:39. > :12:52.James Knox gained his angel wings yesterday afternoon. Sleep tight
:12:53. > :12:59.little man." It is heartbreaking. It is very, very sad. We are in shock.
:13:00. > :13:04.I knew he was very sick, but you kind of just expected him to get
:13:05. > :13:06.better because he is such a fighter. It is just heartbreaking.
:13:07. > :13:09.Thanks to fundraisers, the little boy travelled to America for
:13:10. > :13:14.specialist treatment in 2012. Six months later, in April last year, he
:13:15. > :13:20.was given the all-clear. But the rare and aggressive cancer returned
:13:21. > :13:23.in August. The Wee Oscar fundraising and awareness campaign, run by his
:13:24. > :13:33.parents, helps promote blood donation. He was a typical small
:13:34. > :13:39.boy, full of beans and you can tell from him that he wanted to make an
:13:40. > :13:44.impact. That was certainly driven by the impact he had on our business
:13:45. > :13:49.here, with helping promote blood donation and recruiting new donors.
:13:50. > :13:53.Oscar Knox will be remembered as a little boy who fought his disease
:13:54. > :13:57.with a smile. His fans in Glasgow Celtic say the five year old's
:13:58. > :14:03.courage was inspirational. He was a very special Belfast boy.
:14:04. > :14:11.And viewers have been adding their tributes to Oscar and his family on
:14:12. > :14:16.our Facebook page. Still ahead, Cecilia will have the
:14:17. > :14:22.forecast... The showers have stayed away until
:14:23. > :14:26.this evening. The team time trials are well under way and the crowd are
:14:27. > :14:30.loving it. I'll be back with a full forecast for the weekend including
:14:31. > :14:36.stages two and three of the Giro d'Italia.
:14:37. > :14:40.The Prime Minister has played down reports he's trying to woo the DUP
:14:41. > :14:44.so their votes could help him if there's a hung parliament after the
:14:45. > :14:47.next general election. Political opponents have accused the DUP and
:14:48. > :14:51.Sinn Fein of failing to capitalise on the positive mood created by the
:14:52. > :14:55.Giro d'Italia after the latest row between Martin McGuinness and Peter
:14:56. > :15:00.Robinson. Here's our political correspondent Gareth Gordon.
:15:01. > :15:03.Selfies don't come more self conscious. Taken by Belfast's Sinn
:15:04. > :15:09.Fein Lord Mayor, it features the Dirst and Deputy First Ministers as
:15:10. > :15:13.well as the DUP Enterprise Minister. -- the first. The launch of the Giro
:15:14. > :15:17.D'Italia required a united front, and so this picture was allowed to
:15:18. > :15:24.tell the story... But only part of it. It's a matter of recognising
:15:25. > :15:29.that we do face serious challenges but as political leaders, we have a
:15:30. > :15:33.duty and responsibility to overcome those challenges and difficulties in
:15:34. > :15:39.the interests of our people. Of course my party will resist those
:15:40. > :15:42.kinds of comments but I do not think dragging those issues to an evening
:15:43. > :15:45.like this is the right thing to do. There could have been red faces, but
:15:46. > :15:48.the overwhelming colour remained pink. But earlier, there were no
:15:49. > :15:53.smiles. They haven't done it. Why not? Because they are worried about
:15:54. > :16:01.the election. That is, in my opinion, politics of the worst kind.
:16:02. > :16:03.This was the latest shot in an increasingly bitter battle. The
:16:04. > :16:05.charge against Peter Robinson was cowardice, according to Mr
:16:06. > :16:09.McGuinness, for allegedly failing to show leadership and condemn loyalist
:16:10. > :16:13.violence in East Belfast. Of course, short of bringing their relationship
:16:14. > :16:17.to a finish altogether, the two men had no alternative but to grin and
:16:18. > :16:24.bare it. Today is the Giro d'Italia, but for how much longer can they do
:16:25. > :16:28.it? We seem to have ready in pink in one hand and the yellow streak of
:16:29. > :16:32.cowardice in the other from republicans. It is mixed messages
:16:33. > :16:36.and the only consistency is dysfunctionality of the heart of
:16:37. > :16:43.government. These are days when the people of Northern Ireland at their
:16:44. > :16:46.best foot forward yet those who claim to lead us take further steps
:16:47. > :16:50.back. Mr McGuinness also accused the Prime Minister of cosying up to the
:16:51. > :16:53.DUP with a view to doing an electoral deal - a claim backed up
:16:54. > :16:58.by a story in this morning's Guardian newspaper. It's pretty
:16:59. > :17:01.normal for the Prime Minister to be meeting political leaders from other
:17:02. > :17:06.parties outside his own party but the point about this meeting, this
:17:07. > :17:11.reception, is that the DUP felt it was pretty lavish, that he was
:17:12. > :17:15.willing them, that the Prime Minister was having an eye to what
:17:16. > :17:18.he might need in a year's time if there is another hung parliament.
:17:19. > :17:23.This is what David Cameron told the BBC... It is only right that the
:17:24. > :17:30.Prime Minister talks to other groups and parts of Parliament. I was
:17:31. > :17:36.talking to some of the leading Democratic Unionists about the lead
:17:37. > :17:39.to try and win some compensation for the fact that Libyan Semtex used by
:17:40. > :17:43.Colonel Gaddafi is being used in Northern Ireland. The drinks after
:17:44. > :17:46.that was an offshoot from the meeting. Sinn Fein will be
:17:47. > :17:53.sceptical, but the next move may have to wait until the Giro leaves
:17:54. > :17:57.town. NI 21 says the relationship between
:17:58. > :18:04.the First and Deputy First Ministers will never work, which ever united
:18:05. > :18:07.front they try to portray. No matter what a day we have, what
:18:08. > :18:11.investment, we will always be let down because they will never work
:18:12. > :18:15.together. In Northern Ireland today, more than ever, we need something
:18:16. > :18:20.that brings us together and irrespective whether you are Irish,
:18:21. > :18:27.British, Polish, we need a common vision and common identity.
:18:28. > :18:37.Let's go back to the Giro d'Italia to the team trial start, @ Titanic
:18:38. > :18:41.Belfast. -- outside Titanic Belfast. This is the team who have been the
:18:42. > :18:47.quickest run the course so far. Many of the spectators have rushed off.
:18:48. > :18:50.They do not want to miss a second off the Giro d'Italia in Belfast.
:18:51. > :18:55.This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them to see the
:18:56. > :19:01.world's best riders. Did you know that the biggest online bike
:19:02. > :19:12.retailer in the world is from Mac to? --? DoaghDid you know that bikes
:19:13. > :19:16.are big business? Getting to the point when you are ready to head the
:19:17. > :19:25.road could be more expensive than buying a new car. You can get
:19:26. > :19:30.yourself into five figures if you go to town, ?10,000 plus if you go to
:19:31. > :19:34.town on all of the parts. There is a point you get to where that
:19:35. > :19:38.extravagance is not necessary and it is only nice to have if you can
:19:39. > :19:44.afford it. You can get into the sport on a sensible budget. Parcels
:19:45. > :19:48.are shipped off to every corner of the globe. Not bad for what started
:19:49. > :19:58.out as a local family owned bike shop in Ballyclare. Pre-2000,
:19:59. > :20:03.pre-Internet, we started selling via magazine adverts and traditional
:20:04. > :20:09.meal order. We went online in 1999, reasonably early for e-commerce. We
:20:10. > :20:13.ship to over 100 countries and we can process 50,000 individual
:20:14. > :20:19.customer orders a week. That is over 100,000 items of clothing, bike
:20:20. > :20:23.parts, bikes themselves. Road cycling has never been as
:20:24. > :20:30.fashionable, but its growth isn't solely down to the arrival of the
:20:31. > :20:35.Giro d'Italia. Many newcomers have been inspired by Olympic success or
:20:36. > :20:39.benefited from the Cycle To Work programme. In the last two years it
:20:40. > :20:42.has been people looking for a bicycle and they have not ridden
:20:43. > :20:47.since they were kids. The Olympics was a big one and TeamGB had a
:20:48. > :20:54.massive on it. Everything is really good. This company might operate on
:20:55. > :20:58.a global scale but like all local retailers, they are having this
:20:59. > :21:07.weekend's big start will create a similar legacy to the London games.
:21:08. > :21:15.It is amazing to see just how fast these teams are going round the
:21:16. > :21:26.course. They reach a very high speed as they go round the course and the
:21:27. > :21:30.amount of work that goes into these bikes, even in terms of preparation,
:21:31. > :21:33.is phenomenal. One thing the local fans love is the intimacy between
:21:34. > :21:38.themselves and the riders. Earlier on in the paddock, they were getting
:21:39. > :21:45.their photographs taken, they were talking about the bikes. In the
:21:46. > :21:50.background, another team is flying past. You can watch live coverage on
:21:51. > :21:57.BBC Two and throughout the weekend on BBC Two. What an experience for
:21:58. > :22:02.local fans. One of the things I did notice, the
:22:03. > :22:07.riders signalling to the people who were encroaching on the road to
:22:08. > :22:11.stand back. If you are going to line the route, it is something to take
:22:12. > :22:16.note of. These guys are going at some pace and we don't want any
:22:17. > :22:21.accidents! The weather has been kind for this evening's time trials.
:22:22. > :22:29.What is in store for stages two and three? Cecilia has the forecast.
:22:30. > :22:38.Hello. I am at the City Hall. It is packed with people around Donegal
:22:39. > :22:42.Square. There is a lot of noise going on. I have been counting the
:22:43. > :22:46.teams as they have come past the finish line. So far, eight teams
:22:47. > :22:50.have come in. They have come in pretty fast. The crowd are loving
:22:51. > :22:56.it, despite the fact that we have had some showers in the last half an
:22:57. > :23:00.hour. Typically, the rain stayed away for the most of the day. In
:23:01. > :23:04.many places, there are massive screens where you can see what is
:23:05. > :23:11.going on and it is fantastic to be able to see it here in Belfast. If
:23:12. > :23:15.you are going to see them at the week and -- weekend you will need to
:23:16. > :23:18.be prepared for rain. Although things are dry at the moment, there
:23:19. > :23:22.is rain to come in from the south-west later on. That will be
:23:23. > :23:26.pretty heavy for a while. Coming in at about ten o'clock this evening.
:23:27. > :23:30.It should have cleared most places by the end of the night and
:23:31. > :23:34.tomorrow's headline is for heavy showers. Tomorrow morning there will
:23:35. > :23:38.be some sunshine for a while before the showers get going. The good
:23:39. > :23:46.thing about showers is that it will not rain all day. There will be gaps
:23:47. > :23:50.in between. Some of the downpours tomorrow will be slow moving. Stage
:23:51. > :23:54.two leaves the City Hall, heads north towards Ballymena and the
:23:55. > :23:58.north coast, then back down the Antrim: . -- Antrim coast. There
:23:59. > :24:10.will be showers en route but hopefully you will get some sunnier
:24:11. > :24:16.moments. Then we have got some lovely photos. Sunday's forecast is
:24:17. > :24:21.for a blustery showers. As it headed south on Sunday, the wind will be
:24:22. > :24:26.behind them and move them along. The showers will hopefully not be so
:24:27. > :24:32.heavy. Back to the studio. That was BBC Newsline when sporting
:24:33. > :24:35.history was made and we welcome the little bit of Italy.