Baguio-Tagaytay race set next week

A historic 288-kilometer Baguio City to Tagaytay road classic, starring the top 30 finishers in the Tour of Luzon, the formal inauguration of the country’s first indoor velodrome and signing of pledges by Olympic Solidarity scholars mark the combined celebration of the Olympic Day and World Bicycle Day on 23 June in Tagaytay City.

“This is a historic first not only for the Olympic Movement but also for Philippine cycling,” said Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, president of both the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and PhilCycling and mayor of Tagaytay City, which is also celebrating on 21 June its 87th charter day.

First, according to Tolentino, is the breakthrough classic — one-day road race — from Camp John Hay in Baguio City to the finish line in front of the brand-new Tagaytay City Velodrome along Crisanto de los Reyes Avenue.

Second, the new track facility — an International Cycling Union (UCI)-standard 250-meter indoor and wooden velodrome — will be formally inaugurated and opened, and third, Olympic Solidarity scholars in various sports will sign their contracts under the guidance of the POC all in one day.

“It’s a celebration and perhaps, it’s the most unique in the world,” Tolentino said.

The Baguio-Tagaytay classic of the PhilCycling will pass through the major expressways — TPLEX, SCTEX, NLEX, Skyway, SLEX and CALLAX — featuring the best 30 performers in last summer’s road spectacle in Northern Luzon.

“It’s all about speed and endurance,” said Tolentino, as he thanked the collaboration of sports patrons and business tycoons Manuel V. Pangilinan and Ramon S. Ang and the MPTC, San Miguel Corp. Infrastructure, Camp John Hay and Duckworld PH for the milestone classic.

The Tagaytay City Velodrome, according to Tolentino, will mark the resurgence of Philippine track cycling — a cycling discipline that offers the most number of gold medals at 10 events for men and women.

“We have confirmed our participation in the track events of cycling at the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand this December,” Tolentino said. “This is to get the wheels rolling for the new velodrome which we anticipate to be one of the velodrome hubs in Asia.”