CYCLING TOUR EVENTS TO SHOW OFF INDONESIA'S BEAUTIFUL NATURAL SCENERY by Fardah

 Jakarta, April 10 , 2017(Antara) - Indonesia, the world's largest archipelagic nation, has been blessed with beautiful landscapes, amazing natural wonders, and scenery of green mountains, virgin tropical forests, white sandy beaches, and breathtaking undersea panorama.

           To show off some of these beautiful scenery, the government has organized international cycling events at national as well as regional levels, where domestic and foreign participants could have a close encounter with the nature. 
     Last year, in May alone, the cycling plus tourism events, organized by regional governments, included Tour de Cenderawasih Bay in West Papua; Toba Audax 2016 in North Sumatra; Tour de Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java Province; Tour de Barelang in Batam, the Riau Islands Province; and Tour de Flores in East Nusa Tenggara.

            This year, local administrations have been gearing up for cycling events such as Tour de Singkarak in West Sumatra, Tour de Lombok Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara, Tour de Flores, Tour de Central Celebes, Tour de Moluccas, and Tour de Indonesia.

         Organized for the first time in 2009, Tour de Singkarak (TdS) is an international event held in cooperation with the International Cyclist Union, the Indonesian Tourism Ministry, West Sumatra tourism office, and Amaury Sport Organization, executor of Tour de France.

          Stretching at a distance of 464.7 kilometers, TdS will start from Padang and finish at Lake Singkarak pear. Participants will have the opportunities to enjoy the scenery and fresh air of Bukittinggi, Sawahlunto, and Lake Twin. This year, TdS is scheduled to be held in Aug.

         In West Nusa Tenggara, hundreds of cyclists from 22 countries have confirmed participation in the Tour de Lombok Mandalika to be held later this month.

          Head of the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Tourism Service Lalu Moh Faozal has said that the four-day race starting from April 13 is organized by the Indonesian Association of Cyclists (ISSI) and has received a recommendation as a Category 2.2 race from The Union Cycliste Internationale.

          "Altogether, there are 22 countries, with more than a hundred cyclists," Faozal noted here on Saturday.

        The countries include Indonesia, the Netherlands, Germany, Laos, Thailand, Switzerland, Australia, Spain, Japan, France, South Korea, Luxembourg, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Colombia, Italy, Mongolia, and China, he stated.

             The Tour de Lombok Mandalika will consist of four stages - Mataram to Kuta, Central Lombok, which is 126 kilometers; the port of Bangsal to Senaru in North Lombok District, which is 113 kilometers; Kuta in Central Lombok District, Sembalun in East Lombok, which is 115 kilometers; and the city of Mataram in 10 rounds, totaling 112 kilometers with sprints in third, sixth, and ninth lanes.

         In Maluku Province, several cyclists from 38 countries have confirmed their participation in the Tour de Moluccas (TdM) to be held in Maluku Province on September 18-22, 2017.

        The international cycling and touring event will cover the Trans Seram route, Bobby Palapia, spokesman of the Maluku Provincial Administration, stated in Ambon, recently.

         Trans Seram has amazing natural beauty, is suitable for adventure, has awesome seas, and unique cultural as well as historical sites, with attractive characteristics that will be able to charm the participants of the event.

         The event will feature four stages. The first stage will start from Piru, the capital of Western Seram (SBB), and proceed to Masohi, the capital of Central Maluku, and Sawai, the capital of North Seram.

         The second stage will start from Sawai and proceed to Bula, the capital of Eastern Seram (SBT) District.

         The third stage will start from Bula and proceed to Wahai, and the fourth stage will start from Liang and finish at the Merdeka Square, Ambon Island.

         So far, 80 cyclists from 35 countries have confirmed their participation, according to Said Assagaff, Governor of Maluku. The number of participants is expected to reach more than 100.

       Preparations for the TdM had begun since April 2016.

        In East Nusa Tenggara, Tour de Flores (TdF) is scheduled to be held from May 9 to 14. 2017.

         The TdF will start in Lembata District, and domestic as well as foreign participants will proceed to Larantuka, East Flores District.

          The 600-km long route of the event will include Manggarai, Sikka District and East Manggarai District.  
     East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), known as a province of one thousand islands, offers a wide array of natural scenery, culture, ethnicity, handcrafts, ancient sites, and unique traditions that could be showcased to foreign tourists.

         In Central Sulawesi, the provincial government has planned an international cycling and tourism event called Tour de Central Celebes (TdCC) this year.

         Celebes is the former name of Sulawesi, one of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, situated between Kalimantan (Borneo) and the Maluku Islands.

         Central Sulawesi has tourist attractions such as Lake Poso; Lore Lindu National Park, which is filled with mysterious megaliths and has a wildlife-rich jungle; Togean National Park; the Salodik and Saluopa Waterfalls; the Morowali Nature Reserve where the Wana people of the jungle live; Talise Beach; and the white-sand Tanjung Karang Beach for divers and beach bums alike.

          To showcase its natural surroundings, the Central Sulawesi administration plans to invite 1.5 thousand domestic and foreign cyclists to participate in the TdCC, to be held in September 2017.

          Invitations will be sent to 250 cyclists from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Australia, the United States, and Europe.

         The remaining 1.25 thousand participants are expected to come from various provinces of Indonesia.

          The TdCC route stretches 300 km from Tojouna-una District to Palu City against a backdrop of mountains, lakes, hills, rivers, waterfalls, and valleys.

        At the national level, Tour de Indonesia bike racing championship is scheduled to be held in July this year.

         The TdI, which usually starts from Jakarta to Bali, will cover a route of seven stages from Banten in the western part of Java to Banyuwangi in the easternmost region of the island.

           "The TdI is designed to become an archipelagic cycling race series and serve as a benchmark for other regions which have cycling tour programs in Indonesia such as the Tour de Singkarak, Tour de Siak and others,"  General Chairman of the Indonesian Cycling Sport Association  Raja Sapta Oktohari said after the soft launch of the TdI on Nov 9 last year.

         The country is eyeing 20 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2019, with this year's target standing at 15 million. ***1***
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(T.F001/A/BESSR/F. Assegaf) 10-04-2017