LifeTaiwan to promote cycling festival
The Tourism Bureau is planning an international “Taiwan Cycling Festival” in late 2010, which the bureau hopes will attract between 100,000 and 300,000 cyclists from around the globe. The proposed 200-kilometer racing route will start from Shoufeng or Cisingtan in Hualien County and end at Luye in Taitung County, said the bureau. “President Ma loves sports, and hopes people in Taiwan can do the same,” said Tsai Hsung-hsiung, minister of the Council for Economic Planning and Development. The plan has been proposed to the president, and will be discussed in detail next week, Tsai said. The festival is the brainchild of King Liu, chairman of Giant Manufacturing Co. Ltd., also a senior advisor to the Office of the President. According to Liu, Taiwan has not only gained a reputation in bike manufacturing, supply, research and development, but has also seen cycling becoming a national craze in recent years. The council decided to realize Liu’s ideas by joining the efforts of the Tourism Bureau, the Sports Affairs Council, and the Environmental Protection Administration, to host the opening event for the Republic of China’s centenary celebration of its founding in 1912. A “Hualien-Taitung International Race” is expected to follow next year, and the government will likely make it an annual event, said the officials. According to the Tourism Bureau’s plan, the two-week-long Taiwan Cycling Festival will cover six events, including an international invitational tournament, a triathlon that combines swimming, cycling and marathon, a long ride of 600 kilometers, a challenge race between 100 and 400 kilometers, an off-road mountain biking competition and an explorative event on the east coast. Though the famous cycling events such as Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a España are difficult to surpass, Taiwan hopes that within five years its bicycle tournaments will become well known throughout Asia, Tsai said. (KL) |
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