August 24th 2009 - Digicel Major Commercial Sponsor of the Historic Race which Celebrates the 10th Anniversary of Independence in East-Timor

Digicel, the fastest growing mobile operator in the Pacific and proud sponsor of the Tour de Timor today kicked off the inaugural race in an official opening ceremony led by the President of Timor-Leste and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Dr. José Ramos-Horta at the magnificent Presidential Palace. Present at the opening ceremony were the 320 registered cyclists taking part in the race who  have travelled from all over the world, as well as a strong international media presence and  tens of thousands of Timorese and international spectators. The race will see competitors  cycle from the capital city Dili through the diverse Timorese countryside, covering 450km over 5 days in a challenge to win the US$75,000 prize pool. Speaking at the event, President Ramos-Horta said, "I am proud and delighted to officially open the inaugural Tour de Timor race. To the race organisers, and to the cyclists, thank you for taking part and thank you for all your hard work in making this historical race of peace happen." The Tour de Timor is the principle sporting event in a series of celebratory activities taking place in East Timor to mark the historic 10th Anniversary of the country's independence throughout August 2009. Race organiser Michael Stone said "The Digicel sponsorship has supported the race in ensuring that the Tour de Timor is a world class event. In addition, Digicel has lent its experience with sporting events from 31 countries worldwide to benefit the Tour de Timor, helping to publicise the race on the international stage." In addition Master Distributor for Digicel, FlexPacific has entered a team to take part in the Tour de Timor in support of Digicel. Digicel customers from all over the world are invited to donate money via the internet using www.ezetop.com service to support Timor-Leste Children's orphanage, Santa Clara. This innovative service is very easy to use. Simply log on to www.ezetop.com and register your details. Select Digicel Fiji, enter the dollar amount you wish to purchase, enter the following phone Digicel Fiji phone number: + 679 7440567 and then press send. The pledged amount is transferred from your credit card to phone credit, and then converted into cash by FlexPacific and donated to Santa Clara. The Digicel team who took part are Timorese cyclists Jacito da Costa, Felicano Dearaujo, Jorge Dec R Dasilva and Djorjio Marques. Jacito da Costa was the first Timorese to cross the finish line in Bacau. The team have been training the course in anticipation of the competition for over two weeks. Stage one of the Tour de Timor sees cyclists travel 128km from Dili to Bacau on the longest stretch of the race. As part of Digicel's sponsorship of the event the yellow jersey which will be awarded to winner of each stage, culminating in a final award ceremony taking place on Friday August 28th 2009 at the Presidential Palace.