CANDELARIA, Zambales, Philippines – Tots Oledan outsprinted a former Tour champion and a veteran campaigner in a scrambling finish to win the inaugural road race in the Zamba Multisports Festival cycling competition in Candelaria, Zambales yesterday.
Oledan, 22, nipped 2009 Tour of Luzon winner Mark Guevarra by a bike’s length and Oscar Rindole by a bike and a wheel to capture the crown in two hours, 57 seconds. All three had identical times.
“I gave it my all in the last 40 kms and broke away in the final 25 kms in Masinloc town,” said Oledan, a native of Carigara, Leyte, after the 120-km race that took the riders to an out-and-back course from the Zambales Provincial Capitol in Iba to the province’s northernmost town Sta. Cruz.
Baler Ravina, winner of various King of the Mountain titles in the country’s major cycling tours, broke away in the final 60 kms approaching the Santa Cruz U-turn and pedalled by his lonesome for the next 30 kms before the peloton, which 2009 Padyak Pinoy champion Joel Calderon towed majority of the way, caught up with him in a climb in Masinloc.
Rustom Lim, the road race bronze medalist in last month’s Asian Junior Championships in Thailand, finished 17th in his first major local race.
Rounding out the top 10 were Ravina, Nicardo Guanzon, Sherwin Diamsay, Ericson Obosa, Eusebio Quinones, Francis Ramos and Calderon. They all clocked 2:58:00.
Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. fired off the three-day Zamba Multisports festival and said he was elated with the turnout that included current and former national champions.
“I am delighted with the turnout, now we can truly say Zambales is making its mark in sports and sports tourism,” he said.
The Zamba Multisports Festival resumes today with the Duathlon Challenge (sprint, 30-km bike, 3-km run) starting at 8 a.m., the Black Sands Challenge-Beach Ultimate Freesbee at 10 a.m. and the Blacksand-Potipot Islang Open Water 2-km Swim Challenge at 2 p.m. All are happening at the Dawal Beach Resort.
On Sunday, the event culminates with the Zamba Triathlon Challenge (standard distance of 1,500 meters swim, 50 kms bike and 12 kms run).