Iran's Emami tops PHL Tour classification phase

Iran's Rahim Emami put up a virtual one-man show of world class cycling on Saturday, registering the fastest time in the individual classification of the 67.2-kilometer 'criterium' race of the Le Tour de Filipinas. The 29-year old Rahim, one of Asia's top riders who placed second in the King of the Mountains event in this year's Tour de Langkawi in Malaysia, negotiated the six-lap race that went around Roxas Boulevard and Macapagal Avenue in one hour, 28 minutes and 32 seconds. The race started and ended at the Rajah Sullaiman park. Rahim, Azad University Cycling Team's fourth rider, earned a 10-second bonus that will be deducted from his overall time after the four-stage race organized by PhilCycling and sanctioned by the International Cycling Union (Union Cycliste Internationale, UCI) as part of the Asia Tour. Five seconds behind Rahim was 7-Eleven's Ericsson Obosa, who submitted a time of 1:28.37 while anchoring a nine-man second group that included three foreign bets – Rahim's teammate Amir Zargari, Suren Cycling's Shiri Sisan Hamid and Alex Coutts of Great Britain. Obosa got an eight-second bonus that will be deducted from his overall time. Hamid placed third, earning a six-second bonus. Amir Zagari, also of Iran, came in fourth. Air21's Merculio Ramos finished fifth, Shopinas’s Eusebio Quinones came in sixth, Lloyd Lucien Reynante was seventh, Irish Valenzuela placed eighth, Coutts ended up at ninth, and Smart's Baler Ravina was 10th. The second to 10th places all had the same time of 1:28.37. With Obosa's teammates Reynante and Valenzuela also making the top 10, their squad – 7-Eleven – easily became the best in the team event, besting Smart and Roadbike Philippines (RBP). Obosa, Vaenzuela and Reynante turned in an aggregate time of 4:25:51, 10 seconds better than the 4:26:01 of eventual second placer Smart (Baler Ravina, Tomas Martinez and Oscar Rendole). Fifteen seconds off 7-Eleven at 4:26.06 was RBP, composed of Tots Oledan, Joel Calderon and Dante Cagas. A total of 73 riders belonging to eight local and seven foreign teams answered the starting gun signaling the start of the annual summer spectacle. All 73 riders boarded the ferry bound for Orani, Bataan Saturday afternoon for Sunday's second stage -- a 153.60-k journey over a relatively flat course starting from Balanga, Bataan and ending at the coastal town of Iba, Zambales. In the third stage on April 18, the riders will be flagged off from Iba, Zambales for a 151.2-k ride through mostly well-paved roads to Lingayen, Pangasinan. - JVP, KY, GMA News