Atilano leads Tour of Cebu

When Emelito Atilano broke away from three riders in the last 30 kilometers, he thought he made a wrong move because he was unfamiliar with the route.

It turned out to be the decisive moment as the three riders didn’t give chase, enabling Atilano of Pangasinan to cross the finish line unchallenged in yesterday’s Stage 2 with a time of 3:4.52.35.

The victory means Atilano will wear the yellow jersey when The Omega Pain Killer Tour of Cebu resumes with today’s Stage 3, a long 168.9 kilometer ride that starts from Toledo City and ends in Dalaguete.

“Mga 10 kilometers na lang siguro ang natira, halos bumigay na ako. Napagod na talaga ako, pero binuhos ko na lang kung anumang pwedeng gawin,” (“With just 10 kilometers from the finish line, I almost wanted to give up. I was spent. However, I poured all my energy and what I need to win.”)Atilano told The Freeman.

Rough roads and a downpour hounded the 96 riders that started for Stage 2 as cyclists suffered flat tires one after the other including first lap 1-2 finishers Basergo and Barbalose. 

Rain started pouring when the riders reached Tabuelan. Because of the downpour, breakaway leader Emil Pablo of Pangasinan, teammate of Atilano, slowed down. Three riders, Atilano, Randy Carbonera (Talisay) and Michael Reyes (Nueva Viscaya), who chased Pablo, finally caught up with him in Tuburan.

While the other cyclists relaxed during the rain, Atilano broke away from the 4-man group and pedaled to his first lap victory in the tour.

Michael Reyes, who has been trailing Atilano throughout the second lap, finished second with a time of 3:06:56.68. 

Danao City’s Nino Surban came up with another third place finish with 3:08:46.95. Carlos Nadyahan of Nueva Viscaya, last summer’s Rookie of the Year in Padyak Pinoy, settled for fourth after submitting a time of 3:08:46.95.

With a clocking of 6:07:28.39, Atilano now leads the tour. Cebu Province’s Albert Basergo, the first lap winner, was relegated to second with 6:09:47.08.

Surban and teammate Eusebio Quinones remain at third and fourth places, respectively in the overall individual standings with 6:11:08.74 and 6:11:21.08 while Nadyahan is in fifth place with 6:11:32.60.

With all the 96 riders still healthy and with two more stages to go, Danao City’s Eusebio Quinones remains confident of his chances. “Kung hindi ako ma-flat bukas (today), gagawin ko ang lahat para maka-lap and mag-overall,” (“If I won’t have any flat tires tomorrow, I will do the best I can to win a lap and take the overall lead.”) Quinones told The Freeman.

Cebu Province is still leading the team standings with 18:23:18:06 clocking. Danao is a close second with 18:26:77.13 and Nueva Viscaya is at third spot with 18:26:36:89.