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Professional Cyclists Whiz into Town for OCBC Cycle Singapore

20 February, 2009, Singapore - The inaugural OCBC Cycle Singapore will take place on Sunday 22^nd February with 5,400 riders taking to the roads and enjoying a full day of action and entertainment. With two days to the event, all 65 professional cyclists are in town, ready for their first-ever road challenge in Singapore.

The event will also be setting a precedent in terms of road closures. With the support of the local authorities, this will be the first time that a 10km stretch of the ECP will be closed for a sporting event. All ECP lanes in the 10km city-bound stretch will be closed for a period of approximately 45 minutes on event day, 22 February, 2009 from 06:30am to 07:15am. Challenges will start and finish at the Formula One Pit Building.

Managing Director of Spectrum Worldwide, Chris Robb, commented on the final preparations for this inaugural event, "It will be quite a sight to behold on Sunday when we have 5,400 Singaporeans of various ages take to the roads. We are proud that the ECP is part of our Super Challenge - 50km route and the fact that we have such a major road closed for the first time for a sports event speaks volumes about the rising trend of cycling in Singapore."

Sixty cyclists, including the eight cyclists from the OCBC Singapore Cycling Team, will kick off the proceedings at 6am with the 50km Super Challenge that sees the cyclists set off on a route that leads them out to Changi Coast Road.

The second event of the day, The Challenge - 40km, with the largest number of participants in any category, will be flagged off by David Conner, Chief Executive Officer of OCBC Bank at 7.30am,  while Minister Balakrishnan will flag off the 9am start of the 20km Community Ride which has attracted a 1,700 strong group of participants. Budding cyclists get their opportunity in the Mighty Savers^TM Kids Ride at 11.30am with over 400 children aged 6 to 12 years taking part in the 5-km ride. High-octane sporting action takes over from 1:25pm with the start of the Masters' Criterium followed by the Men's Open Criterium at 2:30pm.

"New sporting events, like OCBC Cycle Singapore add to the variety and vibrancy of our Singapore sports calendar. People do sports for many different reasons: the competitive challenge, the incredible satisfaction that comes from a workout or the fun that comes from good times with family and friends. At the Singapore Sports Council, we run programmes and events that make it possible for people to make sports a bigger part of their lives. Having partners like OCBC Bank and Spectrum Worldwide makes our job easier, and the rising participation in sports tells us that the message is working," said Mr Oon Jin Teik, CEO of Singapore Sports Council.

Sixty-five professional cyclists from around the world will bring the curtain down on Sunday when the elite field cycles round a 2km circuit at the Formula One Pit Building. Top professionals including Malcolm Elliott (GBR), Ken Hanson (USA) David McCann (IRL), Brett Aitken (AUS), Jeremy Yates (NZL), Samai (INA), SungBeak Park (KOR), and Anuar Manan (MAS) will be competing in their respective teams. They will face a strong competitor in Danish cyclist, Alex Rasmussen.  Rasmussen arrives in Singapore fresh from his victory in the Madison at the Copenhagen Six Day race in January 2009. Two cyclists from the OCBC Singapore Cycling Team, Ho Jun Rong and Daniel Loy, will also feature in the same event.

McCann said, "This is my first time racing in Singapore and I am really looking forward to Sunday's Elite (Professional) Criterium.  OCBC Cycle Singapore is a new event for us all, so it will be interesting to see which teams perform best and who has the freshest legs to make it in the final sprint."

The public is also encouraged to head down to the Formula One Pit Building, for a day of entertainment and sporting action on Sunday, also the final day of the OCBC Cycle Singapore Expo where bike enthusiasts will be able to check out the latest equipment in the cycling world, including Treknology Bikes 3 Pte Ltd and F2P Customised Sports Wear. There will also be a programme of talks and seminars featuring interviews from some of the top cyclists competing in the event. The Singapore Flyer car park is open from 10:00am and its dining and retail outlets are open as usual. Anyone who rides on the Singapore Flyer during event day will automatically be included in a prize draw for a Trek bike courtesy of OCBC Cycle Singapore official bike shop Treknology.

For more information visit www.ocbc.cyclesingapore.com.sg