Images: Sonoko Tanaka

Last year’s winner, Fortunato Baliani (Team Nippo – De Rosa), registered a solid, but not spectacular, performance, checking in 15″ behind Nishitani. KSPO’s Joon yong Seo, a stage-winner in last year’s Tour of Thailand, finished runner-up, with Nishitani’s teammate of eight years, Kazuhiro Mori, in third. The combined performance of Aisan’s riders was enough to elevate the Nagoya-based team – managed by Fumiyuki Beppu’s older brother, Takumi – into first place amongst the team rankings.

LEADERBOARD
Individual General Classification (Green jersey): Taiji Nishitani (Aisan Racing Team)
Points Classification (Blue jersey): Taiji Nishitani (Aisan Racing Team)
King of the Mountains Classification (Red jersey): N/A
Best Young Rider Classification (White Jersey): Joon yong Seo (KSPO)
Teams General Classification: Aisan Racing Team

INSIGHT FROM THE PELOTON

Ryota Nishizono (Champion System) | 13th in today’s stage; 13th on GC at 0’09″

“Nippo broke the peloton in the third stage last year so, until then, it’s important for GC contenders, like me and Adiq (Othman), not to lose time. Adiq’s condition is relatively good, I think. Of course, we will do our best at the Mt Fuji stage this year. Since last year, the Shuzenji stage [CiQ: Stage 5, held at the Continental Cycling Center in Shizuoka Prefecture] is 50 kilometres longer than in the past. It’s a big difference, because it’s a very hard stage. Even after 90 kilometres, the peloton is almost broken. Every year, 10-20 riders don’t start the next day. It’s a very aggressive day. It’s difficult to beat the Nippo guys and some of the pure climbers up Mt Fuji, but we have a chance in Shuzenji to get the time back.

I’ve looked at several riders in Lampre and Vini Fantini, but not many of them are climbers; most of them are classics riders, sprinters or rouleurs. Looking at their recent results and from my experience, Nippo may again take control of this race, especially at Mt Fuji. According to my feeling at Trentino and last year’s experience, (Julián) Arredondo is stronger than the average ProTour climbers. You could see this at Langkawi; he beat every ProTour rider, so even this year we have to watch out for Nippo. From Drapac, Darren Lapthorne looks strong, I think. But only Nippo has three cards to play: Arredondo, Baliani and Compagnaro.”

Tomorrow is a transfer day, with the race convoy heading to Mino, Gifu Prefecture, approximately 250km to the northeast of Sakai. At time of writing, fair weather is expected, with temperatures forecast to be between 17-29°C.

Reigning Japan National ITT Champion, Ryota Nishizono, gets some face-time with local media.

Two of South Korea’s biggest road cycling talents, Chan jae Jang (Champion System Pro Cycling) and Sung baek Park (KSPO) catch up.

As always, the morning featured a criterium – which does not count towards the Tour of Japan classification – which was watched by an estimated 66,000 spectators.

Lampre-Merida, the sole ProTeam in the Tour of Japan – newly upgraded to 2.1 status this year – gave the organizer some bang for its buck in the criterium.

Apprehensive: Craig Lewis tentatively opens the door of his team’s car. The rain stayed, but at least the temperatures were spring-like.

Julián Arredondo (Team Nippo – De Rosa) studies the start list

A sport for young and old. Now get those clap sticks clapping!

Quite a wet day, eh mate? Drapac Cycling’s Thomas Palmer finished in 17th, 10″ behind Nishitani.

Joon yong Seo riding into 2nd place.

Kazuhiro Mori blasts off. He would finish third overall a mere three minutes and thirty-one seconds later.

Kohei Uchima, 4th placed overall after today’s stage.

Does anyone have a photo of Taiji Nishitani sans smile? One of the most consistently-happy guys in the peloton -and for especially good reason today.

The team to beat: Hideto Nakane, Julián Arredondo, Fortunato Baliani, Kohei Uchima, Simone Compagnaro, Shinichi “The Legend” Fukushima

STAGE 1 RESULTS

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE ONE

BACKGROUNDER
First run in 2001, the Tour de Korea has a lot going for it; not least of which is direct backing from the South Korean government. With its USD200,000 overall prize purse, aerial media coverage, first-rate traffic enforcement and opening/closing ceremonies that probably wouldn’t look out of place at the Olympics, it is possibly one of the most well-resourced UCI2.2 races anywhere in the world.

In terms of contribution to the pro cycling scene, South Korea has always ranked highly – after China and Japan, respectively – in terms of the number of riders racing for UCI professional cycling teams. However, this significant representation remained purely at a UCI Continental until late last year, when Chanjae Jang signed with Chinese ProContinental squad Champion System Pro Cycling. Indeed, one of the problems for aspiring riders from the PRK has been a lack of exposure to international racing when compared to their peers from China and Japan [Note: graph below is from the 2012 season; a 2013 update will be made next month.]

Click on image to jump to related post: “Pro Cycling: how far would you go? | Asia”

28 year-old Sung Baek Park (KSPO) remains the only South Korean to have won the Tour de Korea (in 2007 and 2012) since it gained UCI2.2 status as part of the then newly-formed UCI AsiaTour in 2005.

A full report of last year’s race can be found here

ON ARRIVAL
On disembarkation, the pro’s arriving into Seoul will immediately notice two things; their bags will probably arrive on the baggage carousel before they do (even after a brisk immigrations process), and connection with the outside world will be so fast they will need to handle their smartphones with oven gloves (Korea completed the rollout of its nationwide LTE network in mid-2012).

There is an energy and night-life to Seoul (population 10.5 million) that could be overwhelming to those riders who live in smaller towns, but it won’t be long before they are amongst the parks, rivers and lakes of the region’s northeast. Clean, ultra-modern, efficient and relatively unspoilt, South Korea is a comfortable place to be a visiting pro cyclist – but not in the harsh winter.

WEATHER
Previously held in the month of April, when days are pleasant and dry, if not slightly on the chilly side, the Tour de Korea (or ‘TdK’ to abbreviate) will this year take place in summer. Higher humidity will be a factor, and daytime temperatures can reach 30-35°C. Historically, the Monsoon season officially starts in July, so torrential downpours will hopefully not be on the radar this early.

DIFFICULTY
No single stage of last year’s race contained any climbs in excess of 500 meters. Well, what a difference a year makes! Pure sprinters will have to leave their GC ambitions at home, whilst pure climbers can expect to plummet down the general classification in stage five, should their TT form not be dialled.

TEAMS BREAKDOWN
Teams must have a minimum of four, and maximum of six, riders and four officials. The following list is provisonal; both Team 3M and Kazakhstan’s National Team are yet to confirm their participation. [Note: a full start list of riders and race picks will be added once available]

LEADER’S JERSEYS
Four jerseys will be awarded at the conclusion of each stage:

Leader of General Classification – Yellow
Leader of Points Classification – Blue
Leader of King of the Mountains (KOM) Classification – Polka Dot
Leader of Young Rider Classification – White

PRIZE MONEY
This year’s overall purse of KRW200,000,000 (USD179,000) has fallen by USD20,000 when compared to last year, but Tour de Korea remains the richest UCI2.2 race on the AsiaTour. Here’s the breakdown:

Overall winner (individual) = KRW12,000,000 (USD10,700)
Overall team = KRW10,500,000 (USD9,400)
Overall KOM = KRW4,000,000 (USD3,600)
Overall Points = KRW4,000,000 (USD3,600)
Overall Young Rider = KRW4,000,000 (USD3,600)
Stage winner = KRW4,000,000 (USD3,600)

MEDIA OUTREACH
Still in development, the official Tour de Korea website will be primed for increased multi-media content delivery compared to last year. Speaking of which, last year’s site was not fully ready to go until hours before the first stage got underway, and the deployment timeline of features on the 2013 version is regrettably consistent with this. However, things happen fast in South Korea, so keep checking back in the days leading up to the race.

The Tour de Korea is also on Facebook and Twitter. Similar to this year’s Tour de Taiwan, TdK has split its target audience, so Facebook updates will be predominantly written in Korean, whilst Twitter updates will be predominantly written in English. Malaysian photographer Aaron Lee is once again being flown in by KSPO (TdK organizer and owner of the eponymous team) to provide official images. Daily stage reports, with full results, images, interviews and other snippets will be posted here.

Followers of Cycling iQ’s Twitter feed may also recall there was a live stream of the final stage from Korea’s Broadcasting Service last year. This post will be updated if, and when, such live streams are discovered/announced.

Finally, Cycling iQ can confirm a professional television crew has been commissioned to create daily highlights packages, which will in turn be broadcast on the official website. This is a huge move in the right direction for UCI AsiaTour stage races, considering the almost unrivalled exposure this gives to sponsors, not to mention engagement with fans.

ROUTE MAP

STAGES AND PROFILES

Stage 1 | Cheonan – Muju 172.0km
Sunday, 9 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 2 | Muju – Gumi 138.1km
Monday, 10 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 3 | Gumi – Yeongju 165.2km
Tuesday, 11 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 4 | Yeongju – Chungju 156.0km
Wednesday, 12 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 5 | Chungju - Chungju (TTT) 25.5km
Thursday, 13 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 6 | Pyeongchang - Yangyang 184.7km
Friday, 14 June 2013 (starts 09:30 local time)

Stage 7 | Yangyang - Hongcheon 145.1km
Saturday, 15 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Stage 8 | Hongcheon - Hanan 90.8km
Sunday, 16 June 2013 (starts 10:00 local time)

Armed only with an iPhone and a few spare minutes between meetings, Cycling iQ set off on a brisk ‘Tour de Halls’ to capture a selection of – road cycling oriented, as is the nature of this blog – images which hopefully would let readers get a feel for what’s happening “over there”.

Not quite as many halls as Eurobike, but just as daunting a prospect to walk around in a short amount of time. The pointy end of the “V” was the place to be – a brand’s visitor rate naturally plummeted the further away its booth was from here. Incidentally, the Shanghai New International Expo Center, where the show is held each year, is a 10 minute stroll from Pudong’s Longyang Road station.

The business end of the show. Between them, Giant and Merida are set to sell approximately 5 million bikes in China. Domestic sales are this year expected to account for more than half of Giant’s local annual production of 6 million units.

Great weather to be indoors.

China Cycle attempts to accommodate consumers along the industry’s entire supply chain – this exhibitor, a factory from Indonesia, had a booth promoting its “full in-house services” to new or existing bike brands looking to produce in that country.

The tagline couldn’t be much more self-explanatory really, but props are there all the same to visually underline the message.

Gammax Bicycle has not publicly disclosed how much it paid ex-NBA superstar Yao Ming to peddle (aw haw haw) its bikes, but his image still wields enormous influence. Who is Gammax? Click on the image to jump through to the road bike section of their website.

As garish as it may be to some, I found myself oggling this CKT 589 bike – as ridden by French UCI Continental team La Pomme Marseille.

Yep, I really liked this bike.

Giant’s global catalogue is comprised of over 700 models, but you will never see all of them in one country. The ‘Crave’ is a female-specific version of the popular ‘AnyRoad’ model which was launched in Taiwan last year.

Giant’s offer to its community goes well beyond simply supplying bicycles. Package tours are a growing part of its business in NE Asia.

Nope, definitely not approved by the UCI…

…but this one is! UCC has been the exclusive sponsor of the ‘Tour of Beijing’ since its inauguration in 2011. Each year, the company supplies 300 bikes for government officials and VIP’s to ride during a short parade which takes place before each stage.

Lansing’s sales representative assured me the company’s chromoly bikes are hand-built by expert local welders. The price of this machine is USD6,000; 15-20 times more expensive than the CNY1,500-2,000 price bracket in which most bicycles are sold in China today.

Tour of Qinghai Lake sent a rather fitting mascot to promote its billing of “Asia’s highest UCI stage-race.”

Soon to be worn by the GC leader of this year’s Tour of China.

Tour of Hainan leaders jerseys. Not for sale, I asked.

The house brand of a Taiwanese OEM, ‘Ranking’ supplies its helmets to several UCI teams, including AG2R, Tabriz Petrochemical Team and 361° Cycling, as well as being sponsor of every UCI AsiaTour race in China. This helmet was made especially for the 2012 Tour of Azerbaijan (‘Tour of Iran’ for 2013)

Many local brands prominently displayed their sponsorship of UCI AsiaTour races in, or in this case above, their booths.

Chinese cycling website/forum Biketo.com released a 1,000 page ‘Bike Bible’, explaining the history of cycling, servicing, bike fit, equipment, and other “how to’s”.

A sweet steel number from Japan’s Bridgestone.

Freelance photographer 视界 released a book with images captured over five years of shooting UCI AsiaTour races. It weighs a tonne.

CNY2,499 (USD400) will get you this road bike from Phoenix. It still costs 20% more than what most Chinese consumers will spend on a bike this year.

Held in May every other year, China Cycle will move to April in 2014. Whether it means there will be MY2015 models on display remains to be seen; some brands showed “MY2014″ models at China Cycle this year, but this is only superficial considering groupset manufacturers have not released their new products yet….

]]> http://cyclingiq.com/2013/05/18/gallery-china-cycle-2013/feed/ 0 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_76 cyclingiq 2013 China Cycle floor plan CIQ 2013 China Cycle_14 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_15 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_24 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_25 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_27 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_28 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_30 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_32 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_34 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_48 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_62 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_74 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_76 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_78 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_79 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_86 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_84 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_91 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_94 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_117 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_123 CIQ 2013 China Cycle_90 http://cyclingiq.com/2013/05/12/2013-tour-of-japan-preview/ http://cyclingiq.com/2013/05/12/2013-tour-of-japan-preview/#comments Sun, 12 May 2013 13:09:54 +0000 cyclingiq http://cyclingiq.com/?p=4887 Continue reading »]]> Newly upgraded to UCI2.1 status for 2013, the 16th edition of the Tour of Japan looks certain to be a cracking race. From 19-26 May, 16 teams, including Italian ProTeam Lampre-Merida, will tackle a challenging 582-kilometre parcours which is not to be underestimated.

TOUR OF JAPAN BACKGROUNDER
First held in 1996, Tour of Japan is less a “tour” of Japan than a series of circuit races taking place in, or close to, major civic centers on the main island of Honshu. The race has followed a fairly consistent format over the years, though a couple of additions along the way, namely the iconic Mt Fuji hill climb (a feature of Tour of Japan since 2005) and a prologue (since 2010), have shifted the balance of power back towards all-rounders – but not so significantly that sprinters are pushed out of the GC game. The first edition was won by then-35 year old Frenchman Jean-Philippe Duracka, whilst Shinichi Fukushima, now riding for Team Nippo-De Rosa, is the only Japanese rider to have won, in 2004. A full report of last year’s race can be found here.

WEATHER
Japan can be very wet at this time of year though, historically, temperatures generally fall between 15-25°C in mid-spring. Humid and sticky conditions are also a feature of the southern part of Honshu island leading into summer. In any event, weather is such a mixed-bag at this time of year that four seasons in one day can be expected.

In pro cycling parlance, the neutral zone is a section of road which begins at the start line and leads the peloton to a point where the race officially gets underway. It usually lasts only a few minutes, and is perhaps the only time that riders are not under duress. This pretty much captures the spirit of the Neutral Zone – no pressure, no expectations and a brief moment for riders to have a little chat. All words are their own, though Cycling iQ has lent support in the form of spelling and grammar where needed.

Images: Mokhriz Aziz

I was born in Tabriz, Iran, on the sixth day of December, 1975. As a sixteen year old, I won some small bike races that were held in our school. I knew then I would love to be a cyclist. There are no other cyclists in my family. I have two boys; the first is five and the other is just one month old, but they are too small to choose any sport.

Every day, on average, I do between four and five hours training. I’m the coach for Tabriz Petrochemical Team, and I do my training with other teammates in the morning. I arrange the team’s road program, combining four days training with one day of rest. In my team, the most important point is teamwork; all riders have to work for the best result. Our country is in between 1400-1700 meters (elevation) so I look for hilly stage races where we can use our climbing talent to get good results. 

In 2012, after 20 years of cycling, I got a problem with the discs in my back. The doctors in Iran, and from other countries, said if I wanted to continue cycling then I must have an operation, but I chose not to and only rested. After nine months, I started cycling again. I feel so much different than before. I feel more motivated and younger than I was in 2012. Tour de Langkawi (March 2013) was my first professional race after my back injury. My form kept getting better, and I was much stronger in the last stage in Le Tour de Filipinas, which was hard and very hilly.

I used to look up to the big riders (winners of the Tour de France) because at that time I thought they were “only” sportsmen. Now I feel differently about the same “big star” riders, because I like to be a champion and winner without any doping. In my opinion, he who is the clean rider is the best rider. When I win a bike race, I am very happy because I never look to others; I just do the hard work on the bike. I like the UCI’s anti-doping program and I want to help make cycling clean in the world.

I can’t say who will be the next big rider from Asia, or Iran, but they will need to have a good head as well as a good body. I feel sorry for myself sometimes that, when I started cycling, Iranian cycling was completely undeveloped, there were not any international races in Iran and nobody from pro cycling knew about cyclists from Iran. Now we have 10 races in this part of Asia and everybody knows about Iran’s pro cyclists. Diplomatic matters still make being an Iranian pro cycling difficult; especially getting visas to travel. I think nobody in the world should mix sports and politics.

Most people in Iran do not use bicycles for lifestyle, because the city is dangerous for cyclists and Iran’s media doesn’t look out for cycling. I cannot say how many years I can still be a cyclist but, in my mind now, I do not want to leave it.

PALMARÈS snapshot
- Asian Games ITT champion (1998)
- Overall winner, Azerbaijan Tour (2000, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010)
- Overall winner, International Presidency Turkey Tour (2002, 2006)
- Overall winner, Tour de Taiwan (2003)
- National ITT Champion (2006)
- National Road Cycling Champion (2007, 2008)
- Overall winner, Tour of Milad du Nour (2006, 2007, 2011)
- Overall winner, Kerman Tour (2006, 2008)
- Overall winner, Tour of East Java (2006, 2008)
- Overall winner, Tour of Indonesia (2008)
- Overall winner, Tour of Singkarak (2009, 2010)
- Overall winner, Tour of Iran (2009)
- Overall winner, Tour de Filipinas (2013)
- UCI AsiaTour individual champion (2006 & 2009)
- 33 stage wins in the AsiaTour (since 2005)

Images: Hong Kong Government

Hong Kong is positively bristling with elite-level track and road cyclists, but it had to wait until last year’s London Olympics for Lee Wai Sze to secure its first Olympic medal in cycling, thanks to Lee’s third place in the Women’s 500m time trial.

Earmarked in 2011 as one of 15 national ‘Elite Sports’ to be allocated significant funding and development via the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) – the Government’s “elite sport training systems delivery agent” – cycling is the beneficiary of an investment quantum that goes well beyond improving an individual’s performance; an international-standard indoor velodrome, with a full suite of complementary amenities, is scheduled to be opened in late 2013.

Only last month, Cycling iQ visited the 2013 Hong Kong National Track Cycling Championships which took place at the existing outdoor velodrome in the New Territories. It became abundantly clear that, idyllic surroundings and friendly atmosphere aside, the velodrome’s hard-to-reach location and minimal facilities would not meet the prerequisite specifications to host international-level events. Most depressingly, spectators were outnumbered by participants.

First mooted in 2006, construction of the new velodrome – located in the Tseung Kwan O Sports Center – finally commenced in November 2012. With a projected cost of HKD1,060,000,000 (USD136m), it significantly outspends other similar projects in the region, such as Malaysia’s proposed velodrome which will receive MYR50m (USD17m) of government funding.

A mere 26 minute MTR ride from Hong Kong Central, the Tseung Kwan O velodrome will be the centrepiece of a 6.6-hectare public space intended to “boost local people’s interest in leisure and sports activities”, according to a statement jointly issued by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and the Architectural Services Department.

The 250-metre long wooden cycling track, built to international specifications, will be surrounded by seating for up to 3,000 spectators, whilst rooms for media, press conferences and doping controls will also be housed under the wavy roof, whose form-language is designed to reference a cycling helmet. Should only a fraction of Hong Kong’s seven million residents decide to take a small detour to the new velodrome next year, Lee and her peers may no longer be racing to the sounds of silence.

Construction of the Tseung Kwan O Velodrome was opened by Hong Kong’s Chief Secretary for Administration, Mrs Carrie Lam, on November 5 2012.

ARTIST’S IMPRESSIONS

HOW TO GET THERE

The 90 minute criterium, which takes place on a compact and technical 1.6km circuit starting outside the imposing F1 Pit Building in Marina Bay, gets underway at 8:30pm on Friday 26 April. A large crowd is expected to watch 62 pro riders sweat it out, quite literally, thanks to the admixture of countless lumens of night-lighting and the fragrant humidity of a 30°C Singapore evening.

“The team is thrilled to have arrived in Singapore and we’re rearing to go”, enthused London 2012 Olympic Games Gold-medalist Ed Clancy, riding for UK-based Continental team Rapha Condor JLT. “The quality of the field looks to be outstanding so we know we’ll have to race extremely well to deliver a result but we come in confident. The route at the F1 Pit Building should provide a brilliant live race and we can’t wait to put on a big performance for the spectators.”

2013 Omnium World Champion Aaron Gate (New Zealand) has also bought into the crowd-friendly and unique format of the OCBC Pro Criterium.  I can’t wait to get out onto the F1 Track and race under lights. There are some brilliant Criterium cyclists here in Singapore so we’re expecting a really tough race. We’ve brought a great team across and we’re excited about showcasing what we’re capable of.”

2012 champion, Robbie McEwen – who has since retired, but retains close connections to race organizer Spectrum Worldwide – is this year responsible for his ORICA-GreenEDGE charges. After offering “some tips on the race and Singapore conditions”, McEwen will no doubt be able to put his feet up and watch the highly-experienced duo of Stuart O’Grady and Simon Clarke hopefully make their mark on the race which, in the true egalitarian spirit of cycling, is free to spectators.

Amongst the team s from the wider Asia region, local squad OCBC Singapore Pro Cycling Team will also start, with Thomas Rabou designated team captain. “Our recent races in Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia have definitely given us good mileage and conditioning. A 90-minute criterium on smooth roads and a world-class field make for a little bit of a different race for us, though, so we have been doing short, intense motor-pacing training to prepare for this criterium.”

START LIST

 COURSE MAP

Images: Mokhriz Aziz

Inaugurated as a UCI2.2 stage race on the 2007/08 AsiaTour – know then as the ‘Melaka Chief Minister Cup’ – the Melaka Governor’s Cup, which takes place in the city of Melaka (Malacca) on the south-western coast of West Malaysia, switched format to a one-day race in 2011. One of four UCI-sanctioned Malaysian events on the 2013 AsiaTour calendar – together with Tour de Langkawi, Tour of Borneo, and Tour of East Java – the Governor’s Cup holds a special place for Malaysia’s National Cycling Federation, given they are both based in the same city.

The marginally-undulating 15.2 kilometre circuit, which in isolation may have appeared tame to the 95 starters, including riders from five neighbouring UCI Continental teams, became a gradually oppressive force as the field chewed its way through a five-hour, thirteen-lap, repetitive slog.

A 14-man break, from which Loh and Nederlof would eventually spring, stirred into action mid-way through the race. All five Continental outfits were represented in the break, though local squad Terengganu Cycling was the only team not to have two riders up the road. The odds of in-form sprinters Ronnel Hualda (Team 7 Eleven presented by Road Bike Philippines) and Anuar Manan (Synergy Baku Cycling Project) shortened as the lap count dwindled, but were blunted as the experience of Loh and Nederlof kicked in.

When the pair broke free off the front of a now 11-man group, Loh’s OCBC teammate, Thomas Rabou, kept a watchful eye over the remaining riders. As it became clear that the duo had sufficient time in the last lap to be assured of at least a second place for the team, Rabou found the legs to solo away from the chase-group towards a guaranteed third place, whilst Loh narrowly succumbed in the final sprint.

FINAL GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

The national cycling federation in question is Malaysia’s. If it seems odd that Malaysia should be at the centre of this breaking news, consider the fact it was Bernama (Berita Nasional Malaysia), an independent news agency of the Malaysian Government – similar to the ABC in Australia – that first broke the news of a possible merging of the two UCI confederations in October last year.

Sadly, the link in the above link is broken, and the article can no longer be found. However, fortunately SBS’s Cycling Central managed to publish a quick overview in an article not long after the above tweet [Incidentally, Cycling Central, a small acknowledgement of the original sourcing by the article's author would have been appreciated].

The video, uploaded to Malaysia Cycling Federation’s official Youtube Channel, spruiks 2014 as the year of the ’1st Integrated Oceanian-Asian Cycling Championships 2014′; which either suggests UCI president Pat McQuaid has already had a follow-up chat with Kazakhstan’s president about a small addition to the 2014 Asian Cycling Championships, or the video is an internal presentation (it had received 12 views at time of this post) designed for in-the-know stakeholders, that has been published in error.

Given another video on the MNCF’s playlist, titled ‘Road Report Asia Race 2012′, shares the same voiceover and artwork as the ’1st Integrated Oceanian-Asian Cycling Championships 2014′ video, one can only conclude they have been prepared by the same team; which, in this case, is the Asian Cycling Confederation’s Road Sub-Committee.

Though no related comments or indications from the Asian Cycling Confederation’s last annual general meeting have been published, the Oceania Cycling Confederation’s new president, Tracey Gaudry, in an interview with CyclingTips last month, stated talks of co-operation at various levels were already underway, even if a merger of the confederation’s respective racing calendars was a “long, long way down the track”:

“When you look at the Oceania Road Championships that are coming up, or the track champs back in December, surely, in the first instance, we should be inviting our continental neighbours to compete in our championships and they should be inviting us.

This would provide racing experience, it would provide a greater spectacle for the audience and a greater incentive for the community to come and watch. You can’t be the continental champion if it’s not your region, but you can win the race. A bit like when internationals could ride in the National Championships, but they they can’t any more.”

UPDATE:
Cycling iQ contacted both the Asian Cycling Confederation and Oceania Cycling Confederation. The following email reply from the Office of the ACC Secretary General confirms the video was a “pre-study” for “internal purpose” and not for public viewing:
“The Youtube Video about the Combined ACC-OCC Championships seems to be falsely released by Malaysian Cycling Federation whose President is Chairman of the ACC Track and Road Committee. He made a pre-study on it as one of the ACC’s internal purpose, but we ACC have not formally determined to organize it at the moment. We need of course to work more with OCC before make any decision on it.”

LE TOUR DE FILIPINAS BACKGROUNDER
In contrast to last year’s event, won by local lad Ravina, the 2013 edition of Le Tour de Filipinas packs in 20% more distance, but leaves the famed “Northern Alps” final stage unchanged. Also increasing in size is the number of UCI Continental teams expected to start, but this in no way dilutes the chances of local riders like Ravina, whose raw talent remains a real threat to unsuspecting first-time international participants. The mixture of Continental, National and Club teams, only serves to increase the chances for surprise.

STAGES AND PROFILES

Stage 1 | Bangui – Aparri 183km
Saturday, 13 April 2013

Stage 2 | Aparri – Cauayan 196km
Sunday, 14 April 2013

Stage 3 | Cauayan – Bayombong 104km
Monday, 15 April 2013

Stage 4 | Bayombong – Baguio 132.7km
Tuesday, 16 April 2013