CHAMPION. Marcelo Felipe of 7-Eleven Cliqq Air 21 (fourth from left) was crowned overall champion of the PRURide PH race in Subic, Zambales on Sunday. (Contributed photo)
SUBIC, ZAMBALES -- Marcelo Felipe of 7-Eleven Cliqq Air 21 was declared overall winner of the PRURide PH race here following the cancellation of the 93.4-kilometer third leg and final leg on Sunday.
The 2.2 event sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), which is the world-governing body for the sport, was cut short due to a heavy downpour that made the road slippery and risky for the riders.
The cyclists took off at the San Bernardo Road inside Subic Bay Freeport Zone and have covered 18 kilometers before the race was stopped at the 22-kilometer mark.
UCI points were awarded for Intermediate Sprint (7 kilometers) and KOM (13 kilometers) categories.
Felipe has accumulated a total time of 7 hours, 57 minutes and 15 seconds after two stages in the overall general classification.
He has earned a total of 16 UCI points and was named King of the Mountain and Best Filipino Rider.
South African Brendon Davids, a member of Australian continental team Oliver’s Real Food, was second (7:58:02) followed by New Zealander Michael Vinks of Australian continental team St. George (8:01:27).
Daniel Ven Carino of Go For Gold Philippines was awarded the Best Young Rider.
Also making it to the Top 10 of the General Classification category were No. 5 Junrey Navarra (8:02:02) and No. 6 Jhon Mark Camingao (8:03:28) of Philippine Navy Standard Insurance, and No. 8 Jonel Carcuera (8:04:52) and No. 9 Daniel Ven Carino (8:05:25) of Go For Gold Philippines.
Philippine Navy Standard Insurance, which was named Best Filipino team, topped the General Classification category. Go For Gold Philippines was second followed by 7-Eleven Cliqq Air 21.
The other local teams which joined the tournament were Philippine Army-Bicycology, Team Tarlac, Celeste Cycles-Bianchi PH Pro Racing, Team Francis Wines and Team Pangasinan.
A total of 156 professional cyclists from Australia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and the Philippines joined the tournament.
Among the 17 foreign teams competing, Malaysia's Terengganu Inc. TSG is the best-ranked in the Asia Tour at No. 2 followed by Hong Kong's Pro Cycling, which is No. 8.
The PRURide PH 2019 also featured PruRide Masters, Virtual Ride, Philippine Strider Cup and Grand Fondo 30km, 60km and 100km races for amateur cyclists.
To further promote health and fitness, fun activities such as Zumba sessions, arcade games and health check stations were also held during the country's largest cycling festival. (PNA)
