Over 200 mountain bike enthusiasts competed at the 2019 Philippine Mountain Bike National Championships in Rizal in early May for a chance to be part of the National team that will represent the country in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
The two-day race event is the premiere mountain bike event in the country sanctioned by Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), and included the Downhill Mountain Biking (DHI) and Cross-Country Olympic (XCO) categories.
Organized by 7-Eleven in partnership with National Federation of Cycling (PhilCycling), the Philippine Mountain Bike National Championships (PH MBNC) aims to promote mountain biking in the country and produce world-class racers who will represent the country in international UCI-sanctioned races.
“The collaboration (of 7-Eleven) with PhilCycling is aimed at making the National Championships more accessible to Filipino cyclists. We are very happy for the turnout this year – at 252 registrants. It’s the biggest registration so far and we are committed to improve on those numbers. Filipinos can excel in mountain biking. We have talented cyclists and we have good topography for mountain bike courses. We can produce world champions. We only need to have a systematic approach,” says Victor Paterno, CEO and President of 7-Eleven Philippines, who himself is a competitive mountain biker.
Niño Martin Eday was the UCI-DHI National Champion for Men’s Elite Category finishing with a record time of 2:34:785. “It has been a childhood dream of mine to join international competitions, and now that I have achieved it, I am really honored and proud to be given the chance to represent our country in the upcoming SEA Games,” the 26-year old biking champ from Iloilo City said.
Lea Denise Belgira, 22, from Guimaras, emerged as the UCI-DHI National Champion for Women’s Elite with a record of 3:21:996. “More than being focused on the training and practicing self-discipline, it is important to be passionate in whatever you want to do,” Belgira said happily in an interview.
Other winners in DHI Elite Men category include Eleazar Barba (0:02:35.781) and John Derick Farr (0:02:36.371), while Naomi Gardoce (0:03:28.566) and Marinela Puno (0:04:02.609) joined Belgira in the DHI Elite Women podium. For the XCO Elite Men category, EJ Flores finished first place with a record of 1:32:11, followed by Nino Surban (1:32:56) and Alvin Benosa (1:33:46). Meanwhile, Timberland Queen of the Mountain, Ariana Dormitorio, landed first in the XCO Women’s Elite category with a record of 1:26:39, followed by Avegail Rombaon (1:30:25) and Mellisa Jane Jaroda (1:38:20).
