SIAM REAP—Ronald Oranza clinched bronze in men’s criterium on Thursday to give the country its third medal in cycling at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
“It was tough all the way,” said the 30-year-old national team veteran who clinched his first SEA Games medal to add to his victory in local tours back home.
Oranza, however, couldn’t have pulled off his medal-clinching ride if not for teammates Efren Reyes and Mar Francis Sudario—both national team first-timers who followed their coaches instructions to the letter.
“Like good soldiers, Efren and Mar did their job and that was to help each other in the race, and for this criterium, it was Ronald who they helped clinch the medal,” said Reinhard Gorantes, who strategized for the first road cycling event of the games with his fellow national coaches Virgilio Espiritu and Alfie Catalan.
Oranza crossed a mere 0.01 second after gold medalist Terry Yudha Kasuma who won gold in one hour, 13 minutes and 38 seconds. Nur Amirull Mazuki of Malaysia was at the Indonesian’s wheel and captured silver with the same time.
Twenty riders started for the 55.20-km event raced 30 laps over a 1.8-km rectangular circuit that had the mystical Angkor Wat as a perfect backdrop.
Reyes crossed just behind Oranza for the same one-hundredth of a second deficit from the gold, while Sudario was eighth—a finish that hardly reflected the sacrifices they made during the entire race that saw the three Filipino riders almost always controlling the pace.
“This is for our country, for my family, for PhilCycling, for Congressman Bambol [Tolentino, Philippine Olympic Committee], the PSC [Philippine Sports Commission] and Sir Judes [Echauz],” said Oranza on behalf of the team that included alternate Jhon Mark Camingao, who, like Oranza are riding out of Echauz’s Philippine Navy-Standard Insurance team.
The Filipinas, however, succumbed to more seasoned opponents as Maura de los Reyes finished sixth, Mathilda Krog wound up ninth and 2019 Philippine SEA Games time trial champion Jermyn Prado getting caught in 12th place.
Thailand’s Jutatip Maneephan won the gold medal with a time of 55:19 after the event raced over the same loop but consisted of 20 loops for a total 38.80 kms.
Vietnam’s Thin That Nguyen and Malaysia’s Nur Aisyah Zubir were half a bike and a bike length behind the Thai to complete the podium.
Team Philippines bagged a silver (Ariana Evangelista) and a bronze (mixed relay) in mountain bike’s crosscountry earlier in the games.
Oranza will again ride the men’s road race with former SEA Games champion Mark John Lexer Galedo, Marcelo Felipe, Rench Michael Bondoc and Nichol Pareja in the individual road race Friday.
The women’s road race closes the cycling competitions on Saturday.
End it…end it