Dadi outlasts Pinoys to win cross-country
Dadi outlasts Pinoys to win cross-country
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Cebu City, Cebu, the Philippines
Dadi Nurcahyadi brought a pleasant surprise in the men's
cross-country in Danao City here, outmaneuvering Frederick Reyes
Feliciano and Eusebio Zaldua Quinones of the Philippines.
The Indonesian clocked 2 hours 18 minutes 48.20 seconds to win
the gold medal, with Feliciano finishing in 2:21:10.85 for silver
and Quinones 2:23:36.92 for bronze.
"It was an unexpected gold because we only thought we'd get
silver or bronze in cross-country," chef de mission Djoko
Pramono, who was visiting Cebu, said during his visit.
"This is good news because some sports organizations have
surpassed their target."
National SEA Games mountain bike coach Chandra Ariavijaya said
the victory was the result of a careful strategy, with Indonesia
only fielding three cyclists focused on the cross-country event,
while other countries had four.
Bandi Sugito and Usman Ali also represented Indonesia in the
event.
"Bandi controlled the main group, while Dadi and Usman were
able to free themselves from the main group," Chandra said.
"But, unfortunately, Usman fell from his bike, thus leaving
Dadi alone to lead all the riders."
C++++cling team manager Sofyan Ruzian, who is also the
Indonesian Cycling Association (ISSI) secretary general, said the
unexpected win would encourage the other cycling team members to
win more golds for Indonesia.
"We are unfortunate not to win more medals through Usman who
have taken a lead in the cross country race along with Dadi," he
said.
"But this win will certainly be a good morale booster for
other cyclists to win more golds for Indonesia."
In the women's cross country, Indonesian Kusmawati Yasid
finished fifth with a time of 2:07:16.33. Baby Marites Sotto
Bitbit of the Philippines took the gold medal with a time of
1:49:54.91, followed by Jirapon Jantharat of Thailand in
1:53:40.90 and Nguyen Thanh Dam of Vietnam with bronze at
2:01:19.72.
The ISSI has targeted five golds in the Games. Two years ago
in Vietnam, cyclists delivered four gold and three silver to win
the overall standings in the cycling competition.
In the 2003 SEA Games, Santia Tri Kusuma won two golds in
women's criterium and 90-kilometer road race, Ferinanto won gold
in men's criterium and Sugianto "Hoho" Setyawan won the downhill.
Hoho retained his gold medal on Monday.