Monday, February 18, 2008 Dropped RP team bikers unfazed, pursues training
THE national cycling team may be buried deep under numerous controversies hounding the Philippine Cycling Federation, but discharged racers are not stopping on their tracks and are pursuing their training.
Members of the Philippine national team in mountain bike, road bike and track racers were dropped from the national team—a move sought after Philcycling failed to address the issues on corruption hurled by the RP team members on them.
However, the cyclists are displaying fighting spirit and decided that their world will not end and they will continue with their training.
“The training goes on even if we were dropped from the team. We will hopefully make it back into the team when all these have settled,” said Baby Maritess Bitbit, a bemedalled, multi-SEA Games winner who was one of the many dropped from the team after putting up a protest against Philcycling.
While Manila-based racers continue with daily training and trails, Cebu-based RP team member Niño Surban, also a SEA Games medalist for mountain bike, already mapped out his plans for various exposures.
Luckily for Surban, he is not merely relying on the support given by Philcycling as he has been backed by patron Oscar “Boying” Rodriguez, who had been bankrolling for Surban’s trips locally and internationally.
Surban recently competed in Luzon, where he raced against his fellow RP team members. Surban will be competing in a race in Malaysia next month.
The protest filed by the national cyclists is still pending at the Philippine Sports Commission and Philcycling. PSC chairman William “Butch” Ramirez could not answer questions on the issue now as he is currently attending to some elite athletes training abroad.
Ramirez had, however, relayed to Sun.Star Cebu before he left for the US that the agency had already investigated though. The results are still kept under wraps. (MCB)
