World Wide Cycling
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At
the end of December 2003 we will race the Tour of South China Sea a UCI 2.5
stage race in Hong Kong, China and Macau. Very special is that this race takes
place during Christmas and New Year.
(Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera)
The
Marco Polo Cycling Club will race with the following team: Masahiko
Mifune from Japan, Masa was the best Asian professional in Europe. He used
to race for Colnago-Landbouwkrediet team. Chris
Bradford, the current Australian national champion and Oceania Champion! Wawan
and Sama’I from Indonesia, the two strongest sprinters from Indonesia.
They are riders from the Indonesian Wismilak team, next year this team will
upgrade to the UCI Trade Team 3 status. Wismilak is a partner-team from Marco
Polo Cycling. Rob
Conijn, a reliable domestic from the Netherlands. Kenji,
a strong rider from Hong Kong. Apart
from the Marco Polo Cycling Club team, some of the Marco Polo Cycling Team, trade team riders will race
together with the Sierra Nevada team from the USA. Tim
Wilson from Australia, Remko Kramer from the Netherlands and Felix Rohrbach from
Germany will race with Chris Baumann and Troy White from the USA.
After the Tour of South China Sea a new event will take place at January 4; the Hong Kong Cycle Classic. This is a pro-criterium with some of the world’s best professionals at the start. Some World and Olympic Champions have been invited, among them David Millar, the current World Champion Time Trial. The
program of the Tour of South China Sea Thursday,
December 25, 2003 08:00 Shatin Stage 98.8km
Criterium - Shingmui Circuit Friday,
December 26, 2003 08:15 Wanchai - Tsing Yi Stage 104.9km
Individual Road Race - Wanchai - Tsing Yi, Hong Kong Saturday,
December 27, 2003 11:00 Shenzhen Stage 90km
Criterium - Longhua, Shenzhen, P.R. of China Sunday,
December 28, 2003 11:00 Guangzhou Stage 121km
Criterium - LinJiang Road, Zhujiang New City, P.R. of China Monday,
December 29, 2003 11:00 Zhongshan Stage 108km
Criterium - Xiaolan, Zhongshan City, P.R. of China Tuesday,
December 30, 2003 11:00 Zhuhai Stage 108km
Criterium - GP Racing Circuit, Zhuhai, P.R. of China Wednesday,
December 31, 2003 09:00 Coloane Stage 90km
Individual Road Race - Coloane,
Macau Thursday,
January 1, 2004 09:00 Taipa Stage 66km
Criterium - Jockey Club Square, Macau And
the Hong
Kong Cycle Classic: Sunday,
January 4, 2004 09:00 Hong Kong Cycle Classic 96 km Criterium - Central Wanchai District, Hong Kong
Report (by Remko Kramer)
The
Marco Polo Cycling Club team worked together with the Hong Kong department of
the Marco Polo Cycling Club, the CMS team. Manager/Protégé of this team,
Louis, made special jerseys for these events, so that the club team and the
trade team could race in the same race. We
arrived one by one from all parts of the world. Chris Bradford from the Marco
Polo Cycling Club team and Tim Wilson from the trade team came from down-under.
Japanese Masahiko Mifune and our two Indonesians Samai and Wanwan still had
quiet a travel within Asia and Kenji lives in Hong Kong and has his home race.
We came from Europe with more riders and then we had the two Americans from the
cooperating Sierra Nevada team coming from the USA. The
days before the race our friends and team-mates from Hong Kong (who race this
event for their national team) showed us some nice rides outside of the city. In
the city of Hong Kong training is almost impossible. There is so much traffic
that you only ride in between rows of cars. December
25 stage 1 The
Tour of South China Sea started on Christmas day with a 72 kilometre criterium
in Shatin, a newly developed part of the city of Shanghai. It was a nice day,
but the curves were wet from a local morning shower, and there were a few
crashes. There were several small breakaway groups but none of them succeeded. In the beginning we raced well, but then it became hard for us, after not racing for so long because of the winter season. Only Tim Wilson looked really good also towards the end, but he missed the winning five men break.
Tim Wilson from Australia, going strong. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) Russian
Oleg Grishkin (Moscow City Sports), who arrived only yesterday,
won the first stage of the Tour of the South China Sea in a five man
sprint, ahead of Australian Brett Aitken (Bicisport) and local favourite Kam Po
Wong (Pocari Sweat Hong Kong). The group finished 51 seconds ahead of the main
field. December
26 stage 2 We
had a preview of the view of the Hong Kong Cycle Classic of January 4. Because
also today the start was given near the Hong Kong Exhibition centre, between the
skyscrapers of Hong Kong Island. Through a tunnel the race went to the Kowloon
side of the water, continuing to the Tsing Yi Hong KongHooncourse. After
arrival on the course, it was Chris Bradford who lit the fire, he was followed
by 6 other riders, but after one or two laps this group was reeled in by the
peloton. Immediately
after this the big guns started attacking, eager to make the race hard for tour
leader Oleg Grishkin and his Moskow City-team. Kam
Po Wong of Hong Kong was with the first favourites that gave it a try. It took
some laps though, before the resistance of the field was broken and with four
(out of 12) laps to go, four riders broke clear. Two
Australians: Peter Milostic and Cameron Hughes, Jan Sipeky of Ducla Trencin and
of course Kam Po Wong made the break. The
Marco Polo riders had a hard time and lost time in the G.C. But Masahiko Mifune
won the field sprint. Kam
Po won the stage and took over the yellow jersey. After
the stage we packed and the whole field left by busses to China. The border
passing took some time, but everything went smooth. In
China we were surprised by the fast development of this region. We saw big
cities with modern high buildings many many companies and very good roads. December
27 stage 3 The
Shenzhen stage was held in the town of Longhua, that hosts many of the world's
biggest bicycle production factories. The Longhua Jin Xiu Jiang Nan Cup was held
on a 4.4 km flat, superfast lap, suiting the track riders especially. There are
many track riders in the Tour of South China Sea this year, as they prepare for
the track season, that will start soon.
The fast concrete roads in Longhua. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera)
A
break of 4 riders managed to stay away from the grouped peloton for a long time.
King Nin Lau (Pocari Sweat Hong Kong National), Shuhai Song (Guangdong province
team), Stanislav Kozubek (Ducla Praha) and Rob Conijn (Marco Polo amateurs) got
a maximum lead of 55 seconds, but never had a real chance to win the race. With
6 laps of 4.4 km to go, the peloton came back on them, as the Beijing-Macao team
closed the final gap. It
was a very fast finally and the teams of especially Moscow and also KED Bianchi
showed they where well organised and built fast moving trains. The Russians
stayed in charge and they won the sprint by a clear 1-2. Serguei Koudentsov
winning the race and Oleg Grishkin becoming second. With Brett Aitken taking
third, the success of the track riders was complete. Marco
Polo riders Masahiko Mifune and Remko Kramer also sprinted in the top ten.
The sprint of stage 3, in the middle the Russians and at the left side, Remko Kramer and Masahiko Mifune. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) Kam
Po is not too confident: "It is a really close race and some riders came
closer again. Grishkin is on 7 seconds now, there are 4 riders within 23
seconds, it will be hard to defend this all the race." December
28 stage 4 The
fourth stage of the Tour of South China Sea in Guangzhou was held at a 5,5 km
'hotdog course'. Because
you could never get out of sight, it was very hard to really break away. But
this didn't hold riders back from trying. The whole race there were attacks and
small breaks and the race stayed super fast.
The ceremony before the start of stage 4 in Guangzhou. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) At
the end of the 110 km race, 8 riders got away and it seemed that they could make
it. Then we had to try something, Chris Baumann and Tim Wilson made their move.
Baumann launched Wilson, who pulled through and managed to get to the leading
group. It
looked like this would be the decisive break. With three laps to go the
difference was still around 50 seconds, with nobody looking interested in
closing the gap. The
Moscow team thought differently however. They waited very, very long, but with
two laps to go they formed their train and brought the speed up really high. And
in the last one hundred meters the fastest sprinters in the peloton where able
to pass the riders from the leading group, resulting in a top ten with 4 riders
of the leading group and six from the peloton. Aitken and Griskin taking one and
two and Lam Kai Tsun, a 19-year old rider from Hong Kong, who won the Chinese
City Games earlier this year, was the surprising third rider crossing the line. After
the stage we went to Zhongshang, we stayed there in a brandnew luxurious hotel,
we were the very first guests. The dinner was the opening ceremony of the hotel
and we enjoyed the delicious food and the nice rooms. The
next days stage was just around the corner, a circuit race on a huge new
industrial development area. The roads and parks including flowers were already
finished, but the buildings were still under construction and no company in
business yet. This is completely the other way around like in Europe were
industrial areas slowly develop. December
29 stage 5 The Zhongshang Torch Cup, as they called the fifth stage in the Tour of South China Sea was at a 3.8, superfast course.
The field all strung out in stage 5. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) The
field was all strung out most of the stage. Still some groups managed to stay
away for quite a few laps. The longest break was by a three man group: Chris
Bradford from CMS Marco Polo amateurs, Yu Tong from the Macau-Beijing selection
and Cheng Keng Hsien from Chinese Taipei did get a maximum lead of 1 minute and
40 seconds. But at the end everything was together again. In the last lap, the
preparations for the mass sprint caused a major crash and half of the peloton
was left behind. The
sprint was a very close one, as Grishkin started really early and Aitken managed
to get next to him, there was no way of passing the Navigators rider from Russia
today however and Aitken lost with half a wheel. Koudentsov took third, in front
of Hung Hsu Ying Chieh of Merida Taipeh. The
crowds watching were huge again and the local organisation showed off with
enormous starting and prize ceremonies. Chris Bradford won the most aggressive rider. And he deserved it with his many attacks and long break-away.
The
winners of different classifications celebrate with champagne. (Photographer:
Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) December
30 stage 6 Stage
6 was held at the car raceway track of Zhuhai, a real GP Racing Circuit. Brett
Aitken (3rd in GC!!) had to draw back from the Tour of South China Sea, he has a
knee injury (tendonitis) and also his participation in the Hong Kong Cycle
Classic on the 4th of January is in danger! American
Chris Baumann in our Marco Polo - Sierra Nevada team attacked from the gun. He
went really hard and had over 1 minute lead after one lap. However the 4,3 km
lap was too big to lap the field. And after some other attacks he was caught
back. Later
a serious group of 10 riders got away and made a gap of more then 2 minutes. The
race looked decided, but the Moscow Omnisport Team had other ideas. They started
their Russian train and pulled so hard that they chased the group down and
prepared another mass sprint and victory for Oleg Grishkin. Wong Kam Po managed
to come besides the fast Russian, but could not pass him. With
two stages to go the difference between the two is 17 seconds. Grishkin failed
only in stage two of this race, the only stage that had some hills. This is
where the hope of the Hong Kong team is at, as the next stage on the 31st of
December is a hilly one on Coloane island and ends with a steep two kilometre
climb. The
fight will be between Wong Kam Po and Oleg Grishkin, Wong probably also needing
the bonus seconds to win this tour. A 17 seconds gap on Griskin in just two
steep kilometres is not very likely. We
left China and went to Macau, a small group of islands that was under Portuguese
government once. We needed another visum and expanded the stamp collection in
our passports. The Russians had a harder time, they should have applied for visa
before and had to wait at the border. That would be something if the tour leader
would not be able to enter the country... December
31 stage 7 The
7th stage was at a hilly course on Coloane in Macao. It was a 9 km circuit with
lots of smaller hills and the race would finish at a superhard climb of about 2
km. Before the start riders were riding up the finish climb, this was a beast of
a climb. Entering through a beautiful dragon porch, it went up a narrow road,
going straight up in the air. The steep 2 km climb lead towards the statue of
the Goddess A-Ma. A-Ma lived in the region around 1000 years AD and Macao was
named after her. Her statue is standing at 199,9 meters above the sea level
where the climb started. Note that there is a 300 meters downhill at 500 meters
to go, making the rest of the climb around 12-15% average! This will be a
torture at the end of the stage.
Oceanian Champion Chris Bradford before the stage. (Photographer: Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) Kam
Po Wong from Hong Kong made a strange move today. He attacked with 5 laps to go
with two other riders: Alexey Kolessov from Kazakhstan and Robert Nagy from
Dukla Trencin. The Moscow team from leader Oleg Grishkin of course never got
worried, they kept the leaders within one minute and rotated on the front with
their whole team. Of
course all the work Wong had to do in the front, was wearing the Chinese
Champion down and Oleg Grishkin was having an easy ride. This
climb would have suited Wong perfectly for a winning move. He also showed this
by still getting *** after
his long hard breakaway. But the Russians caught him back just a few km before
the last climb. On
the foot of the climb, there was a crash, caused by an inexperienced Chinese
rider. One of the victims was Cameron Hughes, when he got going again however,
he managed to sprint up the mountain towards a second place. The climb perfectly
suited Wong, who won many races with short, steep climbs, but he lost his best
forces already and could not get rid of race leader Grishkin. Milostic
won a few seconds on Wong and Grishkin, which brings him in the same time as
Wong on the third place, Wong second as he has more points. Milostic gave it all
he got in the last very steep climb, falling down after the finish and laying on
the ground for a few minutes, and he wasn't the only rider that couldn't stand
on his legs anymore behind the line. Chances are small that the Oceanian Time
trial Champion will come closer in the last stage a 66km criterium in front of
the Jockey Club in Macao. It
was New Years evening, but no party yet, there was still one stage to come at
New Yeas day! January
1 stage 8 Can
you think of a better way to start the New Year? Race at January 1st, that is
what we did! The last stage in the Tour of the South China Sea was a 66 km criterium in front of the famous Macao Jockey Club.
The
staff of the Marco Polo Cycling Club watching the race. (Photographer:
Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) The
criterium was a very fast and spectacular race. Spectacular, not in the least
because of many crashes. One of the victims of the crashes was Tim Wilson. Tim
lost his GC and bruised his calve, but he should be OK before the Hong Kong
Cycle Classic. The
fast circuit made it possible for many riders to attack. The spectators saw very
active teams especially from Guangdong, Beijing/Macao and Marco Polo. There were
attacks all the time and most attacks were brought back by new attackers. When
the Moscow team had to chase a group down, it was often race leader Grishkin who
did this personally. With only three laps to go the complete Russian train was launched again and this time it was Grishkin who pulled the sprint for Sergey Koudentsov. Chris Baumann and Felix Rohrbach found each other in the hectic finally. Chris did a perfect lead-out and it looked like Felix was going for a stage win. However Grishkin took care of business and took Felix to the curb just before the last corner at only 200 meters from the finish. Felix used his shoulder to make some space, but lost a lot of speed. He still went into the turn as first but now Koudentsov, first and the Czech Blaha second could come around. But finally we had someone at the podium.
The
first three of stage 8 make a toast with the champagne. (Photographer:
Francis Cerny, Nikon camera) The
evening it was party time. The ceremony dinner with many courses was enjoyed
with a good glass of wine. All the teams got along well together and everybody
had fun. In a bus we went to the centre of Macau, with all their casinos and
discotheques. The
next morning we packed and were taken by "speedferry" back to Hong
Kong. A kind of hoovercraft boats with hundreds of seats take care of fast and
spectacular transport between these two parts of South-China. The organisers of the Tour of South China Sea (Hong Kong Cycling Association, Chinese Cycling Association and Federacao de Ciclismo Macao) did a great job. The Hotels were great, all logistics perfectly planned and all information provided efficiently and quick.
Here
we would also like to thank the organisers for their great hospitality!
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