Francis Lopez, Project Director, MPTC Tour of Luzon, John Patrick Gregorio, President Duckworld, Raul Pagdanganan, President and CEO of Cardinal Santos Medical Santos Center, and Dr. Antonio Say CSMC, Chief Medical Officer in photo.
DuckWorld, CSMC to ensure safety of Tour of Luzon
THE health and safety of participants, officials, and spectators in the soon-to-be revived Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) Tour of Luzon 2025 remain of paramount importance.
That’s why the MPTC and event organizer DuckWorld PH have partnered with the Cardinal Santos Medical Center (CSMC) to ensure the health and safety of all.participants in the eight-stage bikathon, which will kick off in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, on April 24 and conclude at Camp John Hay in Baguio City on May 1.
DuckWorld Chairman John Patrick Gregorio and CSMC President and CEO Raul C. Pagdanganan signed the Memorandum of Agreement in a ceremony held at the Philippine Center for Advanced Surgery of CSMC last Monday.
“When Dean Francis (Diaz) said, CEO Raul (Pagdanganan) want to do a collab to do this iconic Tour of Luzon, I said, siguradong successful yan,” said Gregorio
“Kaya nsman hindi na ako nag dalawang isip kaya go na go yan kasi siguradong successful yan,” Gregorio added
CSMC will provide medical services for the multi-stage cycling tour, offering on-site emergency care, first aid stations, transport services, and immediate response teams.
“This signing of this agreement symbolizes Cardinal Santos Medical Center’s commitment to excellence, for the safety and health of all the participants mirroring our advocacy in the larger context of our patients and partners. This also embodies our trust to teamwork and collaboration at the core of everything that we do,” said CMSC president Pagdanganan
“Promoting safety in sports is not only about competition. More than that, it pertains to a celebration of the health and fitness that are each inspiring all of us, that each send a powerful message to all of us that safety and health is indeed pivotal in achieving our lofty goals,” Pagdangan added
A total of 105 riders from 15 teams will compete, with the opening stage covering a 180-kilometer route starting and finishing in Paoay.
This will be followed by a 60-kilometer team time trial race in Stage 2, heading to Vigan, Ilocos Sur.
In Stage 3, the cyclists will ride 135 kilometers to San Juan, La Union, before tackling the 150-kilometer Stage 4 route from Agoo, La Union, to Clark.
Navy-Standard Insurance Philippines is making a strong return alongside its riders who dominated the 2019 bikefest. They will face tough competition from teams such as 7-Eleven Roadbike Philippines, Victoria Cycling Team, Go-For-Gold, and the Philippine Army.
Riders from Excellent Noodles, D’ Reyna, Dandex Multi-Sports, and MPT DriveHub are also set to compete.
Provincial teams, including Tagaytay City-Tom N Toms, Nueva Vizcaya, Davao, and Cebu, will also join the action alongside the National Under-23 squad.
International contenders from the Singapore National Team, ASC Monsters of Indonesia, Vietnam National Team, and Thailand are also in the lineup.
The team champion will take home P1 million and earn a year-long possession of the prestigious Tour of Luzon Perpetual Trophy.
