India finished the track leg of the Hero Cycles Asian cycling championship on a high by winning two silver medals at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex Velodrome on Monday.
T. Manorama Devi was the host’s biggest star as she stole a march on her opponents in the final lap of the women’s junior keirin to claim the second spot.
Despite a good start, the 16-year-old from Manipur fell behind after she was blocked by the rest of the riders. However, the teenager eventually found an opening to charge past three opponents in the last 50 metres of the race.
“Since I was suffering from some tightness in the thigh muscle, I didn’t want to ride in the outer lines of the track. So, I changed my strategy midway through the race and stayed close to the other cyclists,” said Manorama.
Jang wins
Earlier, Deborah lost her gold to South Korea’s Yeon Hee Jang in the women’s junior sprint. The 19-year-old was defeated in the first heat but led the Korean throughout the final lap to win the second.
However in the final contest, Deborah conceded too much ground in the penultimate lap and Jang easily held her off to claim victory. India finishes the junior track cycling events with four medals (two silver and two bronze). In the elite category, the South Koreans are on top with eight gold, two silver and three bronze medals. Hong Kong and Malaysia are second and third, respectively. The championship now moves to the Buddh International Circuit for the road cycling competitions from March 13 to 17.
Tuesday is a rest day.
The results: Men: Sprint: 1. NG Josiah (Mas); 2. Hassanali Varposhti (Iri); 3. Lae Seon Choi (Kor).
Keirin: 1. NG Josiah (Mas); 2. Mahmoud Parash (Iri) +0.159; 3. Won Gu Jun (Kor) +0.383.
Women: Sprint: 1. Fatehah Mustapa (Mas); 2. Jingjing Shi (Chn); 3. Xuemei Li (Chn).
Keirin: 1. Wai Sze Lee (Hkg); 2. Fatehah Mustapa (Mas) +0.077; 3. Xuemei Li (Chn) +0.194.
Junior: Men: Sprint: 1. Muhammad Firdaus Modh Zonis (Mas); 2. Jea Hee Jung (Kor); 3. Ryuta Nogami (Japan).
4km team pursuit: 1. Japan; 2. Kazakhstan; 3. Malaysia.
15km points race: 1. Hiroto Harai (Jpn) 19; 2. Xuan Ping Xu (Chn) 13; 3. Hwang Hee Kim (Kor) 11. Keirin: 1. Muhammad Firdaus Modh Zonis (Mas); 2. Jea Hee Jung (Kor) +0.035; 3. Yeong Soo Kim (Kor) +0.368.
Women: Sprint: 1. Yeon Hee Jang (Kor); 2. Deborah (Ind); 3. Farihah Shahwati Mohammad Adnan (Mas).
4km team pursuit: 1. South Korea; 2. Chinese Taipei; 3. Kazakhstan.
10km points race: 1. Yao Pang (Hkg) 60; 2. Ji Hye Choi (Kor) 9; 3. Noor Azian Sazali (Mas) 8.
Keirin: 1. Yu Shiou Cheng (Tpe); 2. T. Manorama Devi (Ind) +0.131; 3. Yeon Hee Jang (Kor) +0.140.
