119 riders, 17 teams mark Tour of Luzon’s return on April 24

A total of 119 riders representing 17 teams—including four from overseas—will hit the road on April 24 as the fabled Tour of Luzon returns with its “The Great Revival” edition in Paoay, Ilocos Norte.

Shelved at least three times since the inaugural Manila-Vigan race in 1956, the Tour of Luzon—presented by Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), DuckWorld PH, and Cignal TV—will feature eight stages traversing seven Northern and Central Luzon provinces, culminating in a mountain-top finish inside Camp John Hay in Baguio City.

“The legendary Tour of Luzon is back,” exclaimed Patrick ‘Pató’ Gregorio, president of DuckWorld PH, whose collaboration with MPTC has led to the 2025 return of the Tour—last staged as Le Tour de Filipinas in 2019. “Let new cycling legends rise, too. This is the first of many revitalized efforts to put the Philippines back on the global cycling map.”

“The excitement has bordered on the extreme,” added Arrey Perez, Chief Regulatory Officer of MPTC and Executive Director of the Tour of Luzon revival edition. “Once again, we will witness the best of Philippine road cycling as we revive this historic summer sports tradition.”

Up for grabs in the PhilCycling-sanctioned race is a ₱1-million cash prize and a year’s possession of the Tour of Luzon perpetual trophy for the team champion, along with ₱500,000 and a uniquely crafted trophy for the general individual classification winner.

The eight stages span a total of 1,074.90 kilometers, starting with the 190.70-km Paoay-Paoay (via Pagudpud) Stage 1 on April 24; the 68.39-km Paoay-Vigan team time trial Stage 2 on April 25; the 130.33-km Vigan-San Juan (La Union) Stage 3 on April 26; the 162.97-km Agoo-Clark Stage 4; the 166.65-km Clark-Clark (via New Clark City and Tarlac) Stage 5; the 168.19-km Clark-Lingayen Stage 6; and the 15.14-km individual time trial Labrador-Lingayen Stage 7 on April 30.

On May 1, the remaining cyclists will pedal 172.53 kilometers from Lingayen to a summit finish at Scout Hill inside Camp John Hay. This final queen stage is expected to determine who lifts the champions’ trophies in a race staged through sports patron Manny V. Pangilinan’s MVP Group advocacy, which promotes sports across all disciplines and levels.

“Besides bringing the Tour of Luzon back on the road, we are also reviving the prestigious ‘Eagle of the Mountain’ title, which will go to whoever conquers the punishing Stage 8,” Gregorio said. “It could all boil down to that final stage.”

Kennon Road will again play a key role in determining the champion, with an all-uphill final 32-kilometer grind featuring gradients that exceed 20%.

The Philippines’ four International Cycling Union (UCI) continental teams—7-Eleven Cliqq Roadbike Philippines, Standard Insurance Philippines, Go For Gold Philippines, and Victoria Sports Pro Cycling Team—lead the field. They’ll be joined by international squads CCN Factory HK (Hong Kong), Malaysia Pro Cycling, Bryton Racing Team (Taiwan), and Gapyeong Cycling Team (South Korea).

Completing the roster are the Philippines Under-23-Tom N Toms Coffee Squad and top domestic clubs: Excellent Noodles, DReyna Orion Cement, Dandez T-Prime Cycling Team, Exodus Army, MPT Drive Hub Cycling Team, 1 Team Visayas, One Cycling Mindanao, and Team Pangasinan. #