United at last
Posted: June 18, 2010 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a comment »After three years of not seeing eye to eye, the feuding factions of the Integrated Cycling Federation of the Philippines (PhilCycling) may finally be on the way to real unification.
Both groups have agreed to conduct joint tryouts for the formation of the national team for the Guangzhou Asian Games in November. Officials of the two factions said the move initiated by the Philippine Olympic Committee could be a breakthrough towards ending their three-year animosity.
In a report by Eddie Alinea at PhilBoxing.com, lawyer and two-time tour of Luzon champion Cornelio Padilla, secretary general of the Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino faction was quoted as saying “It’s a good start.”
The 1966 and 1967 Tour champion and the only Filipino rider to finish an Olympic Games road race was also reported as saying it is “very possible” that the warring factions would agree to a permanent truce that will lead to the resolution of the leadership controversy.
Armando Bautista, Padilla’s counterpart in the Mikee Romero-led faction, was meanwhile reported as saying “the joint tryouts… opened the avenue for us to at least agree on a common goal, that is to form the strongest possible team for the Asiad.”
The conflict between the two groups has caused embarrassment to the country in the international arena a number of times. In last year’s Southeast Asian Games in Laos, the entire national team was barred from participation due to the riders’ lack of licenses from the governing Union Cycliste Internationale.
The UCI recognizes Tolentino’s group, but the POC, going against its own charter which mandates that only national sports associations recognized by its International Sports Federation should qualify to be a member of the POC family, recognized instead the group of Romero.
The tryouts start July 9 and 10 with the road events – mass start and individual time trial – at the Subic Bay circuit. The mountain bike events consisting of downhill and cross country races will follow on July 11.
Track events which include the 1-km ITT, 4-km individual pursuit, Olympic sprint for men and women and keirin and 50-km. point race for men will be held July 12 and 13 at the Amoranto Velodrome in Quezon City.
Philippine cycling fans will surely be looking forward to a better organized and better prepared national team that will carry the country’s flag high in the Guangzhou Asian Games.
