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Tour of Luzon (manila standard item)

Tour of Luzon invites foreign riders

FOREIGN riders will see action in the 2010 Tour of Luzon this April.

Integrated Cycling Federation of the Philippines president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino said this yesterday after organizers, led by Gary Cayton, were able to invite a professional team from the United States, one from Iran and another from Indonesia.

“Marami silang na-invite and I was able to facilitate their licenses for their participation here,” said Tolentino, also the mayor of Tagaytay City.

The continental team from the US sees action under the Kelly Benefit Strategies banner.

Their presence is expected to make the Tour of Luzon a premier international stage race when it gets under way this summer.

Tolentino explained that the Tour of Luzon was supposed to take place for 12 days in April, but it was shortened to only four because of the coming national elections.

The four stages will be held in Tagaytay, Manila, Subic Bay and Baguio.

The American riders are expected to show their best not only against the country’s top Filipino riders, but against rivals from Indonesia and Iran as well.

Kelly Benefit Strategies, according to reports, ended the 2009 season as the highest ranked non-ProTour team on the USA Cycling Professional Tour where they place fifth.

They are also the highest-ranked North American Team on the UCI America Tour at third spot.

The team also won three international UCI stage races after Andrew Bajadali took overall honors at the Tour of Thailand while Scott Zwizanski won both the Vuelta Ciclista del Uruguay and Canada’s Tour de Beauce.

Team members also made two podium appearances at the USPRO road championships in Greenville, South Carolina with Zwizanski earning a bronze in the time trial while Bajadali taking silver in the road race

Team KBS is also planning to join a race in Singapore, and the Tour of Thailand.

The team will also make two trips to Europe, once in the spring to prepare for the Tour of California and again in the summer. Peter Atencio

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TOUR OF LUZON update

Unknown rider steals thunder from big guns MARIKINA CITY—Mark Guevarra, a virtual unknown with legs jaded observers describe as tailor-made for the climbs, stole the thunder from the big guns in the Liquigas-LPGMA Tour of Luzon’s third stage that was halved because of—again—heavy traffic. The 23-year-old Guevarra, a veteran of the 2006 and 2007 Padyak Pinoy, topped Wednesday’s stage from Tagaytay City to the Marikina Sports Center by his lonesome in four hours, four minutes and 12 seconds, 48 seconds ahead of the more veteran Benito Lopez Jr. of the Batang Tagaytay team. “Proud na proud ako sa nagawa kong ito,” said Guevarra, who works in an auto painting shop of his first career stage victory. “Wala rin sa plano ko na kunin itong stage na ito, basta sinunod ko lang ‘yung game-plan ng team [Road Bike-7-Eleven] namin na protektahan ‘yung lamang namin sa team competition. Pero ’nung nagkaroon ng pagkakataon, kinuha ko na,” added Guevarra, who earned an extra P5,000 cash prize courtesy of Burlington. Former Eagle of the Mountain Paquito Rivas, head of the race management group Philippine National Cycling Association, picked Guevarra as one of the young contenders for the overall individual title in the Tour sanctioned by the PhilCycling headed by Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino. “Climber siya, at malaki ang pag-asa niyang manalo dito,” said Rivas of the young rider, who displayed his mountain-climbing prowess during the Sierra Madre qualifying races of the Tour organized by Arnel Ty through Liquigaz and the Liquified Petroleum Gas Manufacturers Association. Guevarra indeed showed he has what it takes to win the Tour. From 11th overall in Stage 2, he leaped to fifth overall, just 50 seconds behind new overall leader, American Vinyl skipper Lloyd Lucien Reynante. Reynante, son of one of the local greats Maui, is slowly shedding off his image as domestique to two-time champion Victor Espiritu, an absentee in this Tour, by grabbing the yellow jersey from My Photos captain and Stage 2 winner Merculio Ramos.

Liquigaz Tour of Luzon revived

POT OF P50,000.00