More than a hundred cyclists from 13 Guatemalan and six foreign teams are participating in the LIX Vuelta Ciclista A Guatemala (Cycling Circuit Around Guatemala), an annual bicycle tournament held in the Central American country each year. The race covers over 732 miles distributed in ten stages with departure in San Benito, in the northern department of Petén. On hand as an Official Partner this year is Latin America’s leading online gaming company, Betcris.
The event is organized by the Guatemalan Cycling Federation and listed as 2.2 by the International Cycling Union (UCI) America Tour. It got underway on October 23 and will end on Friday, November 1. The departure point was in in Petén, bordering with Mexico, 19 years after the last time this department was part of the tour.
Betcris is a subsidiary of TV Global Enterprises Ltd., a gaming company licensed and registered in Malta. It is a leading operator of online gaming activity and has established operations in more than 100 locations across Latin America, including in Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Panama and others. Betcris has platforms in place to offer sports gambling, casino games, mobile gambling, eSports and more.
The 59th lap, which will have as a pet a jaguar in honor of one of the most emblematic and characteristic animal species of Petén, will be dedicated to the children of Ayuvi, an association of children with cancer.
The Guatemalan Aflredo Ajpacajá will defend his title against foreign teams, including Gateway from the United States, Global Cycling from the Netherlands and Level Cycling Team from Switzerland, who were officially presented on October 22.
The Guatemalan Army team returns as the protagonist of Vuelta Ciclista A Guatemala after its participation in the early 70s. It now has in its ranks Melvin Daniel Boron, a formidable Sub 23 soccer star a few years ago, and Oscar Serech.
Of the six international teams that arrived for 2019, the presence of the National Team of Peru was also noteworthy. It is headed by Alonso Gamero, winner of three stages the previous year, 5th in the Individual General Classification and leader in the early stages. They also have Andre González, winner of the stage that ended in Totonicapán, 13th place in the general and second in the classification of flying goals, Alain Quispe Champion of the Flying Goals and Royner Navarro.
The involvement of Betcris highlights its importance to the gaming industry in Latin America. The company’s brand is found at strategic locations throughout the circuit, and it also has naming rights associated with a great deal of marketing material.