Filipino cyclists compete in Asian Championships

MANILA, Philippines - Youthful Rustom Lim and veterans Irish Valenzuela and Tots Oledan banner the Philippines’ campaign in the 31st Asian Cycling Championships and 18th Asian Junior Cycling Championships firing off today in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.

Lim, 17, will compete in the road events of the Junior Championships of the annual competitions staged by the Asian Cycling Confederation under the auspices of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).

Lim emerged as the top junior (under-18) rider in the PhilCycling National Open which association president Bambol Tolentino staged in Tagaytay City. He is from Guimba, a town in cycling hotbed Nueva Ecija.

Valenzuela, a veteran of the Guangzhou 16th Asian Games, and Oledan, on the other hand, will vie in the Elite category of road cycling-massed start and individual time trial.

The PhilCycling sends riders to the 12-day Asian Championships which are held annually. For this year though, Tolentino said the federation could only send three riders because the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) no longer supports cyclists in the national pool.

“We in the PhilCycling have an obligation to the sport [of cycling] and to the cyclists,” said Tolentino. “So even without the PSC support, we are sending these riders, although a token delegation, to the Asian championships.”