Ferinanto takes third win, Razali still in lead

Ferinanto takes third win, Razali still in lead

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Ferinanto again showed his sprint power as he won the eighth
stage on Monday, but Malaysian Sharulneeza Razali held his yellow
jersey in the Tour d'ISSI, with the final stage to complete on
Tuesday.

Ferinanto, a 25-year-old rider from East Java, led Suwandra of
West Kalimantan and Yudhantara of West Java to the finish line,
covering the 234-kilometer eighth stage, which stretched from
Madiun to Surabaya, in five hours, 14 minutes and 56 seconds.

It was his third win, his previous triumphs being in the third
and fifth stages.

The wins have yet to lift Ferinanto's position in the overall
standings, given that he failed to complete the fourth stage,
from Purwokerto to Pekalongan.

Despite failing to step up to the podium, Shaharulneeza Razali
still kept the yellow jersey, with an overall time of 31:06:51.
Compatriot Suhardi Hassan followed in second place a minute and
nine seconds adrift, with Amin Suryana of West Java in third
place, two minutes and five seconds behind the leader.

Malaysia also looks set to take the team overall victory, now
that it leads West Java by a minute and 45 seconds.

Ferinanto was not too bothered by his fading prospects for
taking overall victory.

"I'm grateful that I was able to achieve my third win on my
own route," said Ferinanto, a native of Madiun, as quoted by
Antara.

With 234 kilometers to cover, the eighth stage was the longest
in the tour, encompassing Madiun, Caruban, Saradan, Nganjuk,
Kediri, Kertosono, Jombang, Mojokerto, Gempol, Porong, Sidoarjo
and Surabaya.

However, with the route relatively flat, the peloton did not
break up until the riders entered the final 10 kilometers, at
which point Ferinanto, renowned for his sprint skills, proved
unbeatable.

Tuesday is the final stage, and will cover a 151-kilometer
route from Surabaya to Pandaan.