Tour de Georgia fighting cancer
For the fifth consecutive year the Tour de Georgia, North America’s premier cycling event, will roll through Floyd County this spring, giving residents and visitors a pair of opportunities to see many of the world’s greatest cyclists right here in our own backyard. Competitors will come into Rome, one of seven host cities, on April 17 from Thomaston to finish off the second stage, then will start the third stage the following day, leaving Rome on their way to Chattanooga, Tennessee.
“The Tour offers something to Rome that very few communities have the opportunity to host,” said Steve Kemp, CEO of United Community Bank, which serves as a Founding Partner. “It’s a family event, and there is no cost to come out and watch.”
While the Tour de Georgia provides entertainment for cycling enthusiasts, general sports fans, residents and visitors alike, it also benefits the Georgia Cancer Coalition, which has been designated as the charitable beneficiary of the tour each year since the race’s inception in 2003. Funds raised during the Tour de Georgia go directly to the Georgia Cancer Coalition’s Research Fund.
“Cyclists have a lot in common with the Georgia Cancer Coalition,” said Bill Todd, Coalition President and CEO. “We both work with a team of professionals, setting our sights on an uphill battle, facing twists and turns, with confidence that we will succeed in our quest. The support of the Tour de Georgia and of the communities of fans around the state helps the Coalition on our path to improving cancer care in the state of Georgia, and we are very appreciative of those efforts.”
Rome’s Harbin Clinic is a leader in the treatment of cancer and is the largest, privately-owned, multi-specialty physician clinic in Georgia. Harbin Clinic Cancer Services focuses not only on diagnosis and treatment, cancer prevention and post-treatment care, but is also involved with clinical research. Harbin Clinic also works closely with the Georgia Cancer Coalition.
“Right now we are working on two future projects with the Georgia Cancer Coalition,” said Dr. Kenneth F. Davis, Harbin Clinic CEO. “One is called the GCC Demonstration Exchange Project, in which the GCC is gathering data from different parts of Georgia, but mostly from here and Savannah. The different entities throughout the state feed information into the project to better understand the effects of smoking and its correlation to lung cancer. The main reason Harbin Clinic was chosen for this project was for our progress in using electronic medical records throughout the Clinic.
“We’re really excited about another project, also,” Dr. Davis continued. “The National Cancer Institute has several sites located throughout the United States, but there is not one in Georgia. These sites are on the cutting edge of cancer work. The NCI is setting up a pilot study to select six sites in the U.S. Harbin Clinic, along with the GCC, Savannah and Columbus, have applied for one of these six sites. This would allow us to offer NCI clinical trials here in Rome.
“It’s really pretty neat to think that a little town like Rome, Georgia, can offer services that you can usually only obtain in the largest cities across the nation,” Dr. Davis said. “It serves as a validation that we are on the cutting edge when Bill Todd and the GCC continue to come back to us. It’s something you don’t see in towns this size.”
The NCI will make its decision on the site selection in April, according to Dr. Davis.
“We feel very good about our chances,” Dr. Davis said.
One cancer survivor is well aware of the Tour de Georgia’s competitiveness. In fact, cycling legend Lance Armstrong won the Tour de Georgia in 2004. The Tour’s winner has gone on to win the coveted Tour de France crown in two of the past three years. The event will again cover over 600 miles of racing and maintains its stature as a tune-up for the Tour de France on the international cycling calendar.
“This is such an exciting event,” Kemp said. “We’ve had the opportunity to see stars like Lance Armstrong along with the future stars of cycling. There has been a united effort from city and county officials and several other groups to keep Rome as a destination on the circuit, and it has paid off. This is a great community for cycling enthusiasts.”
More information, including up-to-the-minute news and a complete tour schedule, is available on the Tour de Georgia website,
Originally appeared in Directions, a publication of the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce, in 2007.