Gong wins stage, grabs yellow jersey
VietNamNet Bridge – South Korean Gong Hyo-suk rode like the wind yesterday to steal the yellow jersey in the sixth stage of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament from Phan Rang to Da Lat City.
Gong led going through the decisive Ngoan Muc and Prenn passes in the 119km stage and eventually crossed the finishing line first to pocket 13 points as well as the red jersey for being the "king of mountain".
Mai Cong Hieu of Domesco Dong Thap, Mai Nguyen Hung from Sai Gon Plan Protection 1 and Trinh Phat Dat of An Giang Plan Protection were all in the running for the red jersey but ultimately failed to take the title.
After the first 40km, the trio of Vietnamese, together with the Korean, who won the red jersey in the 2007 tour, broke away from the main body of riders. But despite their heroic effort, it was Gong who led the field at the 50km mark.
The Korean went on to lead going into the second pass before finishing the race in 3 hours, 29 minutes, 7 seconds. He clocked an average speed of 34.144km per hour.
All three Vietnamese riders failed to make the top three after being overtaken in the home stretch. Ochibaatar Tumubaatar of Mongolia came second 6.02 minutes after Gong. He was followed by Kim Gu-hyeon, another South Korean cyclist.
Viet Nam's Cong Hieu, who suffered a flat tyre, finished in the third group of riders.
The impressive ride means Gong took over the yellow jersey from teammate Yoo Ki-hong for his total time of 15:54.39. Jang Gyung-gu, also from South Korea, was second. Cong Hieu, after a disappointing race, dropped to third.
On the team side, South Korea held on to the top spot with a combined time of 46:41.45 for six stages and are now assured of winning the tour.
Sai Gon 1 are second with 46:52.45. An Giang, who clocked a time of 47:00.07, are in third place.
The seventh leg of the race will be 10 laps around Da Lat's Ho Xuan Huong Lake, a distance of 51km - the shortest leg of the tour.
The nine-stage event has attracted 13 teams from Viet Nam and three foreign teams from South Korea, Mongolia and Laos. The winners will walk away with prize money of US$16,900.
VietNamNet/Viet Nam News
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