Aywaille has always been a cycling nation, organising and hosting races for different categories and other rides. In cooperation with the province and/or local clubs, the municipality organised the European mountain bike championships in 1998, the Belgian road championships in 2009 and the World Youth Trials Championships in 2015. Other Belgian trials and enduro mountain bike championships were also organised by local clubs.
In late 2013, the municipality was approached by the non-profit organisation La Maison de la Mémoire du Cyclisme, which wanted to exhibit its members’ collections in some way. Some time later, it was the collection of the late Roger Wéry that had to find another place to be displayed so that it could remain visible.
The municipality had a free space (the ground floor of the former Hôtel de la Grotte in Sougné-Remouchamps) that could be suitable for a museum project. In 2015, she therefore launched a project to restore the site. In 2017, the province of Liège responded positively to a request for financial and logistical support. An agreement was signed with the municipality. Thanks to a substantial grant and the support of human resources, the project was finally launched in 2019 with the drawing up of initial plans, the preparation of specifications for the furniture and scenography and the follow-up of the project.
Wallonia and the Commissariat Général au Tourisme and Visit Wallonia, as well as several other collectors and associations, joined the project and also gave their support to the Maison du Cyclisme.
A comfortable space was set up for the Maison du Tourisme Ourthe-Vesdre-Amblève, which will be inaugurated on 17 June 2022, alongside the premises reserved for the Maison du Cyclisme. A collaboration and partnership was established with the Maison du Tourisme OVA, which will also be the reception and entrance for the Maison du Cyclisme Liège-Bastogne-Liège. The association GREOVA (Groupement Régional Economique d’Ourthe-Vesdre-Amblève) also supported the project.
Despite the vicissitudes of the COVID crisis and the 2021 floods, the municipal and provincial departments have continued their important work to design the project around the history of the cycling races, aiming to immerse visitors in the heart of the races. It also aims to help them learn more about cycling and its various disciplines.
The originality of the project lies in using new technologies in a cutting-edge environment and offering special virtual experiences that allow visitors to learn while having fun. High-quality décor ensures a warm welcome and a modular space for an enjoyable visit.
Finally, a cooperation agreement between the Royal Cyclist’s Pesant Club Liégeois and the House of Cycling made it possible to attach the name “Liège-Bastogne-Liège” to its name. The “Maison du cyclisme Liège-Bastogne-Liège”, located on the route of the oldest cycling race, a stone’s throw from the famous Côte de la Redoute, is now ready to welcome you and let you (re)discover cycling, its history, its great moments and its actuality.
