The Ecuadorian corridor Richard Carapaz has confirmed that he will take part in the Cycling Tour of his country that will take place in November with a route of about 1,200 kilometers, after having criticized its organization this summer. In a video released by the Ministry of Sports, the cyclist appears on a road in El Carchi, the border province from which he hails, announcing that he is preparing for the XXXVIII Vuelta, which is scheduled to begin on November 13 and will have eight stages.
What This year’s distinctive feature is that the city of Guayaquil, in the coastal area, has been included in the tour, which in previous years used to focus on the Sierra region. In its different stages, the Vuelta a Ecuador will have a prologue in Guayaquil, a coastal stage from Salinas to Manta, and then enter Quevedo, Santo Domingo, Machachi, Ibarra, Tulcán and Atuntaqui. The eighth and last stage will be like last year a circuit in the emblematic Middle of the World.
With a budget this year of around half a million dollars, double that of last year, the Vuelta CiclÃstica a Ecuador will have mainly national runners, and some from countries in the region such as Colombia, Bolivia, Peru or Mexico. At the moment it has not been reported if Carapaz, 28, will run with the jersey of his international team Ineos Grenadiers, or with that of a local team.
The organizers called a press conference in Quito to present the details of the same, in which The winner of the Giro in 2019 will participate, second in the Tour of Spain in 2020 and third in the Tour de France this year. For Ecuador, the participation of its Olympic champion in the past Tokyo Games is a sporting and image boost, in particular after the rider’s criticism of the cycling authorities in his country from France about poor planning beforehand to allow elite riders to be in the national competition.