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Tour de Singkarak 2017 to kick off this weekend
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The first day of Tour de Singkarak (TdS) 2017 will be held this weekend on Nov. 18. (Antara Photo/Hafidz Mubarak A)
The first day of Tour de Singkarak (TdS) 2017 will be held this weekend on Nov. 18.
Dubbed the biggest sports tourism, the cycling race will start from Batusangkar city then continues to Tanah Datar regency and finish at Bukittinggi city.
Up to 20 teams from 30 countries are going to tackle nine laps with a total distance of 1,097 kilometers. Winners will be awarded a total prize of Rp 3 billion (US$222,000).
TdS was first held in 2009 and has become a mandatory championship in Asia that is able to attract more than one million visitors. In 2013, Amauri Sport Organization (ASO), the committee of Tour de France, recommended TdS as a major race in the Asian region.
This year marks the ninth anniversary of the event.
In the Union Cycling International (UCI) calendar, TdS is listed in the Asia Tour 2.2 category.
Based on the number of visitors, TdS takes the fifth spot with 550,000 people right after Santos Tour Down Under with 750.000 people, Vuelta a Espana with five million people, Giro d’Italia with eight million people and Tour de France with 12 million people.
Read also: Leading yachting publication features Sail Sabang 2017, Weh Island
Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said TdS has helped in promoting new tourist destinations in West Sumatra.
“TdS that travels to Minangkabau doesn’t only promote Lake Singkarak as there are other destinations such as Harau Valley, Kelok 9, Pagaruyuang Castle, Gandoriah Beach, Padang Beach and Tiram Beach,” told Arief.
The first lap of this year’s race stretches from Tanah Datar to Padang (107 km), meanwhile the second lap is from Painan to Sawahlunto (166 km), third lap is from Muaro Sijunjung to Punjung Island (100 km), fourth lap is from Singkarak Lake to Payakumbuh (135 km), fifth lap is from Harau Valley to Padang Panjang (101 km), sixth lap is from Solok City to South Padang Aro Solok (140 km), seventh lap is from Pariaman to West Pasaman (157 km), eighth lap is from Padang Pariaman to Agam (101 km) and the ninth lap is from Pasaman to Bukittinggi Circuit (90 km).
In 2015, up to 48,755 foreign and 6,973,678 domestic tourists traveled to West Sumatra. The number increased in 2016 to 49,686 foreign and 7,343,282 domestic tourists.
West Sumatra is located in the central west of Sumatra Island. The province has lowland area in the west coast and volcanic highland area formed by Barisan Hill that stretches from northwest to southeast.
Several popular tourist destinations in the province are Ngarai Sianok in Bukittinggi, Maninjau Lake, Danau Di atas, Danau Di bawah, Lake Singkarak, Lembah Anai Waterfall, Ambun Pagi, Carolina Beach, Bumpus Beach, Kerinci Seblat National Park, Singgalam, Jam Gadang, Pagaruyung Castle, Japanese cave in Agam and Pagarujung Royal Palace in Batusangkar. (kes)
