Ho Chi Minh City, Loc Troi An Giang Group racer Petr Rikunov affirmed his comprehensive strength when he won both the Yellow and Green Jerseys at the end of the cross-country cycling race for the Ho Chi Minh City Television Cup - HTV Cup 2024.
On the morning of April 30, the final stage from Dong Thap to Ho Chi Minh City, 163 km long, was welcomed by a large number of fans from the West to the Thong Nhat Hall. With the title race already decided, the cyclists mainly attacked to find the stage victory. After 3 hours 50 minutes 47 seconds with an average speed of 42.377 km/h, Estonian racer Martin Laas of Vinh Long won over Le Nguyet Minh (HCMC New Group) and Quang Van Cuong (Military Zone 7) in front of the Thong Nhat Hall in Ho Chi Minh City to win the stage.
Martin Laas celebrates his victory after finishing first at Thong Nhat Hall, Ho Chi Minh City today, April 30. Photo: Duc Dong
However, Laas' victory was only honorary because at the end of the 2,700 km journey from North to South, Russian racer Petr Rikunov (An Giang) won the race's most prestigious title - the Yellow Jersey. This is the second consecutive time the 26-year-old racer has won the Yellow Jersey.
"This year's title is more difficult than last year's, when the opponents are very strong and I myself had an accident and was injured at the beginning of the tournament. Therefore, this overall victory is very precious to me and my teammates - who have supported me throughout the journey," Rikunov said.
In this year's race, Rikunov won the first three stages in a row. Then, due to an accident, he fell in the fourth stage from Hoa Binh to Hanoi, losing the Yellow Jersey to Frolov (HCMC New Group). However, with his comprehensive strength in sprinting, climbing ability and individual timekeeping, Rikunov easily regained the prestigious Yellow Jersey. He finished the race with a total time of 64 hours 32 minutes 8.3 seconds, 1 minute 15.2 seconds faster than Timofei and 2 minutes 3.79 seconds faster than Frolov.
In addition, Rikunov also won the Green Jersey for the sprint king with 10 stage wins and a total of 253 points. Rookie Laas finished second with 16 points less. In his first competition in Vietnam, the Estonian cyclist made a strong impression with a strong sprint at the finish line. However, due to his limited ability to climb hills, he only won 8 stages and had to finish behind Rikunov in the race for this title.
Rikunov (yellow shirt) celebrates victory with An Giang team at noon on April 30. Photo: Duc Dong
Although he could not compete for the Yellow Jersey and the Green Jersey, Frolov also asserted his strength on mountain passes such as Hai Van and Khanh Le, to win the Red Dot Jersey - the king of mountain climbing - for the third consecutive time with 50 points. He was 7 points ahead of Rikunov and 16 points ahead of his teammate Timofei.
In the race for the Orange Jersey for the best Vietnamese racer, Nguyen Tan Hoai of An Giang won. "For me, this jersey is no different from the Yellow Jersey because it is for the best domestic player. I am very grateful and appreciate the help of my teammates to protect it," he said.
Pham Le Xuan Loc (Military Zone 7) also competed excellently to win the White Jersey – Best Young Rider. This is the third consecutive time the 19-year-old racer has won this award. With an energetic and beautiful racing style, Xuan Loc and his teammates from Military Zone 7 also won the style award of the race.
Vinama TP HCM won the team championship. They completed 25 stages with a total time of 193 hours 15 minutes 17.5 seconds - 4 minutes 5.8 seconds more than the second-placed team An Giang. Dong Thap ranked third overall with 27 minutes 13.82 seconds, slower than Vinama TP HCM.
Immediately after the race, the Vietnamese racers immediately boarded a plane to Hanoi to attend the Dien Bien Phu Cycling Race opening tomorrow afternoon, May 1 at Hoan Kiem Lake, Hanoi.
Duc Dong
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