Six giant companies back teams in Tour Pilipinas

Six leading companies — Bowling Gold, Tanduay, PLDT NDD, Gilbeys Island Punch, Samsung and Intel—have agreed to sponsor teams that are running in the Tour Pilipinas 2003.

The companies’ support, thus, underlined the Tour organizers effort for an ideal blend that would see the private sector and government in the middle of one major sporting endeavor.

On the government side of the race that starts April 24 and ends May 11 are the Drug Busters and Patrol 117 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Ecosavers of the Environment and Natural Resources, Postmen of Transportation and Communication and Vat Riders of the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

The government teams will be carrying monickers that stress on advocacy programs.

A 12th team would be aptly called the Newsboys, which, according to Tour chairman Bert Lina, would be racing to honor the effort of many cyclists who have molded their career out of delivering newspapers on bikes.

The Tour will be spread over 18 days with the riders racing for 15 stages covering at least 2,460 kms.

The 100-vehicle Tour caravan, which consists of close to 500 officials and personnel, will begin its trek down south to Legaspi City, the kick off stage on April 26, at dawn of April 24, according to Paquito Rivas, head of the race management group Philippine National Cycling Association.

Up for grabs in the race is the top team prize of P1 million and the individual classification purse of P200,000. Prizes total over P3 million.

Besides the race which has been an annual summer sports tradition for half a century, the Tour will also be a mobile fiesta with nightly shows scheduled in all stops in Legaspi City, Naga, Daet, Lucena, Tagaytay, Marikina, Olongapo, Dagupan, Vigan, Laoag, San Fernando, Baguio and the Luneta in Manila.