May 8/08 11:03 am - Tobago International Cycling Classic Invites Teams for 2008

Posted by Editor on 05/8/08
 

Tobago International Cycling Classic Invites Teams for 2008

In 2007, we celebrated yet another immensely successful year of the Tobago International Cycling Classic. Now the platform is set for the biggest ever staging of this world class sporting event in Tobago. Our planning is already set in motion to take this positive momentum into the 2008 version of the region's Premier International Cycling Event.

The Cycling Classic continues to attract large contingents of international Teams, Cyclists, Journalists & Friends from Europe, Australia, North America, South America & all of the Caribbean to our shores annually... In just over two decades the Tobago International Cycling Classic has move from a one day road race among local club mates to being an established international cycling stage race event competing over 4 days in 5 races.

Last year saw a record number of 75 international and regional competitors from 12 countries challenging the best of the Caribbean. Among them - Olympic Champions, World Champions and Professionals of Tour de France fame. A cycling pedigree that is hitherto unprecedented of Road Cycling in the Caribbean. Little wonder that the popularity of this event continues to endear itself on the local and Caribbean sporting communities. In fact this endurance event is now being regarded as the "Tour de France of the Caribbean".

Over the years the Cycling Classic has unearthed a great deal of local talent, chief among those is the Caribbean most successful and dominant Road Race Champion of all times, Tobago's own Emile Abraham, who created history for T&T in 2007 when he won a Silver Medal at the Pan American Games, becoming the first road cyclist in the Caribbean to do so. What made this even more significant was that Cycling achieved the highest award among all T&T sporting discipline at these Games. Cycling is now more visible to a larger audience from T&T, throughout the Caribbean and internationally.

In our quest to stay ahead of the game and position this Event among the best international road stage race on the International Cycling Calendar, we introduced a new and dynamic Stage 5 in 2007...The Tour of Tobago. After years of the same tested and tried course that had become the hall mark of the Cycling Classic, the organizing committee decided to change gear in midstream. With the opening of the much anticipated New Link Road from Bloody Bay to L'Anse Fourmi then on to Charlotteville and Speyside, an awesome strip with a series of brutal climbs, undulating through the lush green rainforest reserve on one side and a steep decline down to the blue Caribbean Sea on the other side, described by some as the 'Beauty and the Beast'....

In the past, Local & Foreign riders were intrigued by the sun, sea and lush greenery that Tobago adds to the Event year after year, but this new piece of roadway is the 'icing on the cake'. It takes "Stage Five" to a whole new dimension for the Cycling Classic and has been able to stimulate much interest with the top Pro Teams from around the world. It also allows cyclists to circumnavigate the island, point-to-point, coast to coast, in a race that seriously challenged the body but satisfied the mind.

Click Here to open Stage 5 map in a new window

This New Cycling Course was given a 5 Star Rating by all of our experienced international competitors, some openly expressed that it was indeed the best road race course they had encountered.

The execution of the event is good and improving every year. Our competitors are our top priority and every precaution is taken to ensure their comfort and safety while in Tobago. For Caribbean Cyclists, the event provides a platform for them to compete against some of the world's best athletes, and interact with experience coaches & managers. It also helps them gain valuable international exposure, make new friends and develop a networking of contacts in pursuit of international contracts.

As has been customary over the years the 'Cycling Classic Village' will be located at Crown Point Beach Hotel and Johnston Apartments Compound. It is a point where a melting pot of cultures interact with each other over 7 days. Relations are formed, nurtured and strengthened. Cyclists, Supporters, Sponsors, Officials, Media and Friends share ideas in an atmosphere that facilitates friendship and lighthearted conversations.

In recent years, we have developed the contacts and associations with many international cycling & sporting associations, professional cycling clubs and the cream of the international sporting media. The Tobago Classic now enjoys a stream of intricate networking systems through our website www.trinbagowheelers.com with many sporting and media web-based organizations with a massive readership worldwide. In short, we now have the organizational capacity, stature and competence to take this event to the next level. We can now put into effect, repositioning and re-branding of Tobago as the premier bastion of sports tourism in the region.

We plan to heighten the profile and increase the appeal of the Tobago International Cycling Classic to a wider international audience. As we look ahead to the Tobago Cycling Classic carded for September 24-29, 2008 with great anticipation, we invite you to contact us, as we showcase the Tobago International Cycling Classic and the beautiful island of Tobago to the rest of the world.