The Tour of Youth Land of Champions
will take place in four stages between December 17 and 20 on routes in the province of Carchi. The event is organized by cyclist Jonathan Caicedo and the high-performance club that bears his name.
There will be four stages with a total distance of 296 kilometers, including two road stages, a time trial, and a circuit.
The race starts on Thursday, December 17, with an individual time trial of 11.6 kilometers between Salado Lake and San Gabriel.
The second and third stages are road stages. On Friday, the route covers a distance of 121.5 kilometers from San Gabriel to El Juncal (round trip), while on Saturday the stage will be from San Gabriel to Santa Martha de Cuba, with a distance of 83.7 kilometers.
The final stage will take place on Sunday, December 20, on a 40-kilometer circuit in San Gabriel. The distances of the stages have been designed according to the respective categories.
The participating cyclists will be divided into three categories: pre-junior (15 and 16 years old), junior (17 and 18 years old), and women, with confirmed teams from Ecuador's provinces of the Coast, Sierra, and Oriente, as well as from Colombia and Peru.
Among the classifications being contested are the overall standings for juniors and pre-juniors, as well as the mountain and intermediate sprints classifications.
The estimated budget for the Tour of Youth is $100,000, with the Ministry of Sports contributing $40,000, and the rest being covered by the organization. A total of $5,500 will be awarded in prizes for the different categories. (D)