BORDEAUX, France, July 7 (Reuters) - Italian Tour de France rider Alberto Bettiol took to social media on Friday to ask French President Emmanuel Macron to return the Mona Lisa to his home country.
"Monsieur le Président, please give us back the Monna Lisa and thanks for coming to the Tour," Bettiol tweeted, using the Italian spelling for Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece.
Macron paid a visit to the world's greatest cycling race on Thursday, where he shook hands with Bettiol, of the EF Education EasyPost team.
It was kept it at the Palace at Fontainebleau, where it remained until King Louis XIV moved the painting to the Palace of Versailles.
Following the French Revolution it was moved to the Louvre museum where it is still displayed.
Persons:
Alberto Bettiol, Emmanuel Macron, Mona Lisa, Monsieur le Président, Lisa, Bettiol, Leonardo da, Macron, Da Vinci, France's King Francis I, King Louis XIV, Vincenzo Peruggia, Julien Pretot, Ros Russell
Organizations:
de, EF Education EasyPost, Thomson
Locations:
BORDEAUX, France, Italy, Loire, Fontainebleau, of Versailles, Florence