A group of 166 riders representing 25 teams were pre-registered with the Colombian Cycling Federation to participate in the 73rd edition of the Tour of Colombia, an event supported by the Ministry of Sport, which will take place from June 16 to 25, along the highways of Casanare, Boyacá, Cundinamarca, Tolima, Risaralda, Caldas and Antioquia.
The current two-time champion of the race, Fabio Andrés Duarte from Cundinamarca, heads the roster of Team Medellín EPM, which will have in its ranks the three-time race champion Óscar Sevilla and the national champion and Pan-American runner-up in the time trial, Miguel Ángel López, who will compete for the first time in the most traditional race of Colombian cycling. Joining them will be Aldemar Reyes, Brayan Sánchez, Javier Jamaica and Yeison Reyes.
The GW Shimano Sidermec, will be led by Jonathan Restrepo, who has just achieved the squad’s first victory in European territory, in the Giro Reggio Calabria, in the payroll that will have an interesting mix of experience and youth, it has names like those of Miguel Flórez, Didier Merchán, Diego Pescador, Andrés Mancipe, Jefferson Ruiz and Jonathan Guatibonza.
The presence of five international squads with a continental category is also noteworthy, among which are the Ecuadorian teams Team Banco Guayaquil, which will be commanded by Robinson Chalapud from Nariño (stage winner, in 2021 and 2022), and Movistar Best PC, which will be led by Marco Tulio Suesca from Boyacá. The Pio Rico – Alcaldía La Vega, from Bolivia, and the Mexicans Canel’s Zerouno and Petrolike will also be competing.
In the national peloton, which will have 57 riders in the Under-23 category, and 109 in the elite, there will be several experienced cyclists who will seek to be the stars of the race, including Rodrigo Contreras, Nelson Soto and Winner Anacona, from Colombia. Power of Life – GW Shimano; Wilson Peña, from Team Sistecrédito; Didier Chaparro, from Super Giros – Manizales Mayor’s Office; Johan Colón, from Orgullo Paisa, and Alexander Gil, from EPM-GO RIGO GO, among others.
The official schedule of the 73rd edition of the Tour of Colombia – Colombia Power of Life will open next Wednesday, June 15, with the confirmation of participants, license check and review of uniforms and delivery of vehicle radios and accreditations, in the Estelar Hotel in Yopal.
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico