'Le Tour' pits RP bets vs world elite riders

MANILA, Philippines - The country’s top riders get the chance to pit their skills against some of the world’s elite as the Tour of the Philippines turns international in its 2010 edition slated April 17-20.

Dubbed the Le Tour de Filipinas (LTDF) by the organizing Dynamic Outsource Solutions, Inc. (Dos-1), the four-stage cycling extravaganza will feature riders regularly competing in pro tours in Europe, Africa, Asia and America.

“This is the culmination of my dream for Philippine cycling,” said Bert Lina, the former PhilCycling president whose Lina Group of Companies has Dos-1 as one of its numerous subsidiaries.

Lina is known in the local cycling community as the person responsible for reviving the fabled local Tour since 2002.

Tanduay is continuing its support to Philippine cycling by once again serving as the LTDF’s presentor. Smart Communications through Smart Sports and Air21 are the major sponsors with Wow Magic Sing, Extra Joss, American Vinyl, among others as the secondary sponsors.

The LTDF will cover close to 500 kms spread over four stages -- Stage One 145-km Tagaytay-Tagaytay, Stage Two 60-km Roxas Boulevard Circuit, Stage Three 148-km Quezon City-Subic via NLEX and SCTEX and Stage Four 160-km Subic-Subic.

Ten local teams and 10 foreign teams, composed of seven riders each, are vying in the race that offers more than P1 million in cash prizes. The event, sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) as a component of the Asia Pro Tour, is a Category 2.2 event, meaning it is strictly for elite and Under-23 UCI riders.

Seven of the 12 members of the national pool are also competing under the team Batang Tagaytay.

Modern photo-finish equipment as well as transponders will be utilized in the race. UCI international commissaire Tatsuo Hayashi has been appointed as president of the LTDF’s commissaires’ panel, which includes local commissaries from the PhilCycling headed by Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino.

Dos-1 president Gary Cayton, chief organizer of the LTDF, said: “We at Dos-1 share Mr. Lina’s dream for Philippine cycling. Dos-1 has been organizing the Padyak Pinoy and with this LTDF, we have reached the pinnacle of our goals.”

Padyak Pinoy 2009 champion Joel Calderon, 2009 Tour of Luzon winner Marc Guevarra and former Tour Pilipinas and Padyak Pinoy titlists Victor Espiritu, Warren Davadilla and Santy Barnachea and rising star Irish Valenzuela are among the local bets tasked to hold the fort for the Philippines.