Representatives present the Vuelta al Tachira (Image credit: Gennaro Pascale)
The 2009 Vuelta al Táchira was presented to the public this week. The 44th edition of the race will take place from January 6 through 17 in Venezuela.
Elio Villamizar, the president of the Asociación Tachirense de Ciclismo, the cycling federation of Táchira, wants to get the Vuelta al Táchira back to its glory days, when it was known as the Vuelta Grande de América.
"For the people of Táchira, we work very hard to offer them the best Vuelta in the past few years. It has not been easy, as there were always some inconveniences, but we believe that with the support of the media and the patrons we can launch the best Vuelta al Táchira en Bicicleta," Villamizar said.
The Vuelta is definitely getting larger, with 10 teams of Venezuela already confirmed. There will also be nine foreign teams and the number of riders at the start line will be between 150 and 170.
The 2009 Vuelta will cover 1,396.6 kilometres over 12 stages. The race is split in six flat stages and six mountain stages.
In 2008, Venezuela's Manuel Medina (Gobernación del Zulia-BOD) won the general classification.
