RIDERS and coaches in this year’s Le Tour de Filipinas all agreed that Stage 2 of the five-lap race will be the difference maker in the 822.2 km race that comes off the road starting this weekend.
Defending champion El Joshua Carino and winner Mark Galedo say the 194.9 km ride from Pagbilao in Quezon to Daet in Camarines Norte may well be considered the ‘killer lap’ of the Tour that is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
“Walang Baguio-to-Baguio ngayon, kaya Stage Two yung pinaka-mahirap,” noted Carino, the national team member who is gunning to become the first ever back-to-back champion of the Category 2.2 event sanctioned by the International Cycling Union (UCI).
“Yung haba ng distansiya, hindi ka basta-basta babanat,” said aledo, the 2014 champion and representing Celeste Cycle, said in Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum at the Amelie Hotel-Manila, three days before the event kicks off in Tagaytay City on Friday with as 129.50-km race.
“Dapat kakalkulahin mo kung saan ka aatake.”
Marcelo Felipe, who topped the PRURide Philippines 2019 Stage Race in Subic, also shared the same belief as the two other Filipino riders, although he did not discount the possibility of the opening stage playing a crucial role in deciding this year’s champion.
“Isa din yung Stage Two sa mahirap. Pero kahit yung Stage One kasi may posibilidad na magka-iwanan din ng malaking oras diya kahit hindi ganoon katarik yung ahon. Siyempre unang araw yan,” said the team captain of 7-Eleven Air21 Cliqq Roadbike Philippines.
The riders were joined in the forum presented by San Miguel Corp., Braska Restaurant, Amelie Hotel, and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) by national team rider Reinhardt Gorantes, Go For Gold’s Daniel Ven Carino and Ismael Gorospe, Eusebio Quinones of Celeste Cycle, 7-Eleven’s Dominic Perez and Le Tour de Filipinas Chairman Donna Lina.
Being a native of Bicol gives Quinones a bit of an advantage as far as understanding the course of the race is concerned.
“Taga Bicol ako kaya tinuturo ko kung saan yung ruta na mahirap magmula Tagaytay paikot ng Bicol,” he said. “Mas advantage yung riders namin (Celeste Cycle) dahil nasasabi ko yung buong terrain.”
Not to be discounted too are foreign riders from China, Japan, Thailand, Kazakhstan, among others, seeing action in the P1.8 million event.
“We have cash prizes for individual and team champions. And surprise din yung ibibigay na special prizes ng mga host provinces,” said Lina, who thanked the support given to the race by provinces of Albay, Tagaytay, Quezon and Sorsogon as well as OneSports by Cignal.
Stage Three covers 183.70 km from Daet to Legazpi City on June 16, followed by 176 km from Legazpi City via Sorsogon and Gubat back to the Albay capital, and finally Stage Five, an out-and-back race in Legazpi City via Donsol in Sorsogon for a total of 145.80 km.
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