| Fadhil Yunus |
BRUNEI emerged first runners-up of the OCBC Cycle South-east Asia Speedway Championship after brushing aside Philippines and Singapore to stake a claim for representation in the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Brunei, who attained a third place finish last year, clocked a time of 20:07.523 behind red-hot favourites Malaysia who finished the race with a time of 18:05.283 and ahead of Philippines who recorded a time of 20:17.583.
The Filipino riders would have been a fraction slower behind the Bruneians had they not been given a 10-second penalty after the race.
Brunei’s cycling coach Mohd Yafiz Jamaludin hopes their achievement could boost their hopes of competing in the 2017 SEA Games.
“I hope this result can be our benchmark to qualify for the SEA Games next year in Kuala Lumpur,” Yafiz said in an interview with the media.
“For me this is good enough and we can hope that we can win more races after this and hope we can call the support not only from the government but also the private sector”.
The coach added that the riders implemented his strategy as they kept their focus to qualify for the final race.
Yafiz highlighted that training in the country without any regional or international competitions without extensive support conceal their main objective of winning a medal in the SEA Games.
Brunei qualified for the semi-finals after beating Singapore in the qualifying rounds who finished more than seven seconds off for a qualifying berth.
Brunei cycling team pose with their mock cheque.
The hosts’ progress was hindered by muscle seizure suffered by cycling member Raymond Quek in his calves and thighs.
With only four riders taking the circuit and one in reserve, Brunei’s Abdul Hadrie bin Morsidi, Muhammad Rafiuddin bin Zikara and Andrew Mikha bin Sianong led by team captain Azmi bin Abd Hadzid managed to qualify for the semi-finals while Abdul Mu’iz bin Yuzaini kept in reserve.
Andrew Mikha was rested for the semi-final round before being recalled for action in the final round.
Even though Malaysia was too strong, Yafiz is satisfied that they held off the Philippines whose tactic to deploy sprint specialist Marko Alab Samwel Guinto Adviento as their trump card backfired.
The Bruneian team was aware of the Filipino’s biggest strength and team captain Azmi insisted they were prepared how to deal with their biggest weapon.
“We knew that the last Philippines rider (Marko Alab) is a sprinter so we just maintained our pace and got ready to sprint after the last corner,” Azmi said.
The team has been busy preparing for the competition for three months and Yafiz acknowledged the commitment shown by the cyclists despite encountering a multitude of challenges.
Yafiz said that they are awaiting invitations from regional tournaments but they will focus on local competitions to monitor their progress in the hopes of reaching the 2017 SEA Games.
He concluded that they are looking to join international competitions to improve their performance and gain experience before their main target.
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