Thai cyclists pedal to SEAG golden opener
Thai cyclists pedal to SEAG golden opener
By Dwiatmanta
CHIANG MAI, Thailand (JP): Thailand's female cyclist Chalerm
Chamchun upset favorite Nurhayati of Indonesia to win the first
gold medal of the 18th Southeast Asian Games here yesterday.
It was a glorious moment for the host team as Suphat Sriwasai
completed a double in the men's 50-kilometer individual time
trial race, also at the expense of Indonesia.
The Philippines added to Indonesia's woes in the 1km time
trial later in the afternoon through Joselito Santos. Indonesia
had to be content with its third cycling silver from Herijanto
Setiawan.
Chalerm pedaled her way to the women's 25-kilometer
individual time trial victory in a convincing time of 36 minutes
and 23.848 seconds. Three-time SEA Games winner Nurhayati clocked
1:0.533 slower than the spirited Thai for the silver. The bronze
went to Nurhayati's sister, Nuraini, who managed only 39:03.905
in the Games medal race opener.
The 25-year-old Thai took full advantage of her first start
with a powerful ride. She completed the first 12.5 kilometers in
17:11.97 to win her first SEA Games victory.
"It's my happiest day ever. I have been waiting for such a
triumphant day for eight years," an elated Chalerm said. She
needed an infusion after the race due to dehydration, but her
brilliant effort will earn her 100,000 baht (US$4,170) from the
Thai Cycling Association.
The Union of Cycling International decided last year to
lengthen the distance of the women's individual time trial to 25
kilometers, saying that women's cyclists had vastly improved.
Chalerm set her best time of 38:50 in the extended race during
her practices prior to the Games.
The Thai team manager, Preeda Chullamontho, said the golden
double did not surprise him at all. "We set our sights on winning
those medals to boost our bid for the overall title," he said.
"Our cyclists are about in the same league as Indonesia," he
said.
A huge number of home fans joined a cheerful celebration even
before the official results were released. It took the organizers
more than 20 minutes to clarify Nurhayati's record.
The Indonesian, starting from the ninth grid, passed two of
her rivals in the final 12.5 kilometers, but the announcement of
Nurhayati's official mark came after that of the rear cyclist.
Complaint
"There might have been an electronic problem when we were
processing the results of the race," an official said.
Indonesian coach Puspita Mustika Adya said Nurhayati had done
her best and should have taken the top honor. "But there are many
non-technical matters we could not cope with," the coach
complained.
Puspita refused to elaborate, but later claimed that the host
team had unfairly snatched the men's 50km race gold medal. "A
policeman nabbed me when I was recording the wrongdoings with my
handy video camera," Puspita said.
Susanto Tonton finished 2:42.04 behind Thailand's Suphat, who
clocked 1:04:39.47 to give Indonesia its second silver of the
day. Malaysian Kumaresan Muruyaga was third with 1:07:47.218.
Indonesia's Australian coach, John Murray, played down the
cheating that occurred during the races. "As far as I see, the
Thais did well today," he said.
Chef de mission of the Indonesian team, Arie Sudewo, who
watched the morning races with the other top officials of the
National Sports Council, suggested that the Indonesian cycling
team refrain from filing any charges against the host.
"They could file a lawsuit for defamation against us if we do
not have enough proof. It would be better if we concentrated on
the remaining events," he said.