Wong ups the pace to win fifth stage

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 10/03/2004 4:59 PM

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Madiun, East Java

Wong Kam-Po of the Hong Kong National Team broke away in the last 20 kilometers to win Saturday's 174.5-kilometer stretch between Yogyakarta and Madiun, while Agus Muhyanto snatched the green jersey as the best sprinter in the fifth stage of the Dji Sam Soe Tour d'Indonesia.

Nathan Dahlberg maintained his place at the top to keep the yellow jersey.

Wong, who arrived here fresh from his victory in Tour de Hokkaido, led a group of 12 riders to cross the finish line with a time of 4:19. Yevgeny Yakovlev of Polygon Sweet Nice Pro Team took second place and Heryawan Sucahyano of the Polygon Sweet Nice B followed in third.

The stage saw an increasingly improved performance from the 31-year-old Hong Kong resident, who said he had a duty to provide guidance to his younger teammates during the tour.

Wong said after he lost significantly from his time in the first stage, he was content with providing support to his younger teammates as instructed by his coach.

""After the first stage, my coach told me to teach the young riders when we were up against the sprint and climbing sections,"" he said during a post-race conference.

Wong's teammates include Wong Ngai-Cing, 26, Tang Wang-Yip, 20, Lam Kai-Tsun, 20, and Tsoi Chun-Ming, 23.

His mentoring may have had an effect on Wong Ngai-Cing, who has managed to preserve his spot in the general classification: He is third behind yellow jersey leader Dahlberg of Greenfields Fresh Milk and Amin Suryana of Sinar Sentosa Purwakarta.

In the team classification, Hong Kong was also among the top three behind Greenfields and Polygon Pro Team.

Dahlberg, Amin and Wong Ngai-Cing were among the lead pack on Saturday that finished in 4:01:55.

""Today was a different race because it was completely flat... so for us, it was no problem because no one was really in danger.

""The problem for us was the team (position). We had only one on the stage. We were four riders and it was hard to cover,"" Dahlberg said.

In regards the prospect of retaining the jersey in the later stages, the New Zealander said: ""For the flat stages, it is a lot easier for us to keep up, so it's more tactical race. Strong riders may go in front, but weaker riders can sit on and later on ... attack them.""

The fifth stage saw the hottest day of the tour at around 35 degrees Celsius, while during the fourth stage, it was around 32C.

After winning the sprint by beating Sansoko Reno Yudo of the Kencana Bike Team and Mohd. Najmi Wan Mohammed of Malaysia B, Agus said he held himself back from speeding, given the tactical plan he had to prevent Amin from being pushed out of second place in the general classification by rivals, particularly Mohd. Basri of Polygon.

""When I found out Basri was in the same pack, I tried to check him in the remaining race,"" said Agus, who toppled Ferinanto of the National Indonesia Team as the best sprint in general classification.

Meanwhile, the commissaire panel announced the disqualification of Pagcor Casino Filipino rider Albert Primero from the tour for holding on to a car during the fourth stage.

The riders are now bracing for the longest race when the tour enters the sixth stage, which spans 234 kilometers from Madiun to Surabaya.

Fifth-stage results Yogyakarta-Madiun

Stage individual 1. Wong Kam-Po HKG/Hkg 4:00:19 2. Yevgeny Yakovlev PSN/Kaz 4:00:19 3. Heryawan Sucahyano PSB/Ina 4:00:19

General individual 1. Nathan Dahlberg GFM/Nzl 20:41:57 2. Amin Suryana SSP/Ina 20:44:11 3. Wong Ngai-Cing HKG/Hkg 20:48:55

Sprint 1. Agus Muhyanto SSP/Ina 5 pts 2. Sansoko Reno Yudo KBT/Ina 3 pts 3. Mohd Najimi MAB/Mas 2 pts

Sprint/general individual 1. Agus Muhyanto SSP/Ina 5 pts 2. Ferinanto INA/Ina 5 pts 3. Lloyd Reynante PCF/Phi 3 pts

Stage team 1. Polygon Sweet Nice Pro 12:00:57 2. Indonesia National 12:01:31 3. Kencana Bike Team 12:02:45

General team 1. Greenfields Fresh Milk 62:15:33 2. Polygon Sweet Nice 62:28:19 3. Hong Kong National Team 62:34:53

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