Registration for the ‘Ride For Life’ five-stage cycle road race which will to pedal off on October 6 closes today.
Cyclists who are not yet registered are urged to visit National Cycling Coach Hassan Mohamed’s Middle Street office during working hours.
The event is now in its fifth year and has been aptly dubbed the ‘Ride For Life 5’. It is an initiative of the Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF), the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport and the Ministry of Health.
The Tour of Guyana five-stage road race will feature Guyana’s top riders as well as cyclists from the Caribbean and the USA.
The event which will be staged over a four-day period will require the riders to cover a total of 266 miles.
The first stage commences at 07:30 hrs at Corriverton and ends at New Amsterdam (46 miles). On the same day, stage two will begin at 14:00 hrs when the riders will pedal off at Rosignol and journey to Georgetown (60 miles).
On day two (October 7) stage three will start at 09:00 hrs at Wales and end at Parika (35 miles). On day three (October 8) the penultimate stage will commence at 07:30 hrs at Supenaam and conclude at Suddie (62 miles).
On the final day, Sunday, (October 9) the final stage will begin at 8:30 hrs with the cyclists riding from Linden and finishing in Georgetown in another 62-mile race.
At the launching of the event Minister of Sport Dr Frank Anthony noted that the five-stage Tour of Guyana race is the most prestigious cycle race in Guyana. He said he was pleased with the development of the race in terms of the rising level of competition and the increasing number of competitors.
The minister added that the race serves as an avenue for local cyclists to gain experience and to learn strategies and new techniques from the foreign riders. Anthony also emphasized that with the local riders competing against seasoned foreigners, their performance and cycling in Guyana will be improved.
President of GCF Cheryl Thompson said that the tour will attract four teams from the Caribbean and Florida’s Team Cocos.
The GCF president went on to say that she expects bigger and better performances from the local cyclists, as they have been exposed to a very high standard of international cycling recently.
Past winners of the Tour of Guyana include Alonzo Greaves (2007), Junior Niles (2008), Geron Williams (2009) and Antonio Quintero of Team Cocos, USA (2010).
