The Tour de France will be held in the Basque Country in 2023, and a final agreement between the Basque government and race organizer ASO is said to be imminent.

A meeting of representatives from the various departments of the Basque Country, which straddles Spain and France, took place on Monday.

At a press conference afterward, Jean-René Echegaray, governor of the French Basque Autonomous Region and mayor of Bayonne, apparently confirmed the plan.

According to Spanish media reports, "Thanks to all of you, the Tour de France Grande Pearl will be celebrated here," he said.

Inigo Urrcul, governor of Spain's Basque Autonomous Community, was less candid, saying that talks were still in their "early stages." However, he acknowledged that all parties are working toward hosting the 2023 Grande Pearl.

"The specific location of the starting point and the subsequent stages have not yet been determined.

The Tour de France will start this year in Brussels, Belgium, and the Grande Parle will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2021.

The Tour last visited the Basque Country in 2018, with a time trial the day before on the French side. The Tour first visited the Basque Country in 1906 for its fourth edition, finishing the stage in Bayonne; in 1992, San Sebastián, Spain hosted the Grande Pearl, which featured a prologue and a road stage.

According to Spanish media reports, Bilbao, the capital of Spain's Basque Autonomous Region, is the most likely candidate to host the 2023 Grande Paar. Bilbao has been keen to invest in sports in recent years, becoming one of the hosts of the Basketball World Championships in 2014, hosting the European Cup final in rugby last year, and being confirmed as the Spanish host for Euro 2020 soccer.