PhilCycling holds National Open

The PhilCycling association said it would form a national pool from the national open championships scheduled Thursday and Friday in Tagaytay City and at the Amoranto velodrome in Quezon City.

The members of the new national pool will become the top candidates for the national team for the 2009 Southeast Asian Games in Laos in December.

A 160-km road race and a 40-km mountain bike competition in Tagaytay City have been scheduled simultaneously on Jan. 15, starting at 8 a.m., at the Tagaytay International Convention Center. Set on Jan. 16, starting at 9 a.m. are the track races – individual pursuit, Olympic sprint and 1-km – at the Amoranto Velodrome.

The new national pool will be endorsed to the incoming set of PhilCycling board of directors, according to outgoing PhilCycling president Bert Lina.

The PhilCycling, whose official name is the Integrated Cycling Federation of the Philippines, will hold its Olympic cycle elections at 1 p.m. at the Amoranto Multi-purpose Hall.

Union Cycliste Interntionale (UCI), headed by its president Pat McQuaid, is sending Asean Cycling Association president Haji Abu Samah Wahab as the international federation’s representative to the elections where the 15 members of the board will be elected.

The Asian Cycling Confederation, the continental arm of the UCI, has certified Wahab’s mission to the Philippines to certify the elections.

Among the front-runners in the elections to be participated in by 87 clubs from all over the country are Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham Tolentino, Harbour Centre owner Mikee Romero, Danao City Councilor Oscar Rodriguez, former Tour champion Modesto Bonzo and contender Juancho Ramores and former Tour titlist and Eagle of the Mountain Paquito Rivas.

The PhilCycling was the second best-performing national sports association after swimming in the 2007 SEA Games on Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. Cycling contributed four gold medals-double the output in 2005 in Manila-after the eight gold medals produced by aquatics (swimming and diving) in Thailand.