The two-time champion of the Tour of Cuba (2009 and 2010) and bronze
medalist in the Guadalajara 2011 Pan American Games will be accompanied by
Yasmani Martinez Yennier Lopez, Jans Carlos Arias, Ruben Mojica and Jose
Companioni, coached by trainer Cecilio Mera.

The first of seven stages, with 189.3 kilometers, begins today between the
towns of San Luis and Villa Mercedes, which includes two intermediate
sprints and a third category mountain prize.

Among the participants in this Tour are the Spanish riders Alberto
Contador, three-time Tour de France winner (2007, 2009 and 2010),
Belgium's Tom Boonen, world champion (2005), Italian Filippo Pozzato,
winner of the Milan-San Remo classic ( 2006) and his compatriot defending
champion Vincenzo Nibali, , among others.

For the Cubans, this tournament will provide training for the coming Pan
American Championships to be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, next March.