KSPO’s Park wins second Tour de Korea title
After eight days and 880 kilometres of racing, the 2012 Tour de Korea peloton returned to the outskirts of South Korea’s capital, Seoul, for its farewell stage. Though much had unfolded over the week prior, yellow jersey Sung Baek Park’s lead over his two closest rivals was so tenuous that today’s stage was far from being a procession; as so many final days in stage races are. The 45.8km course, from Yeoju to Hanam, provided 55 minutes of scintillating suspense; from which Park ultimately delivered the best return on investment possible for joint team owner and Tour de Korea organizer, KSPO.
Beginning the day three seconds and four seconds, respectively, behind Park on general classification, Alexander Candelario (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies) and Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo) appeared to have only two options to unseat the KSPO rider.
The first, and most unlikely, option was for both men’s teams to join forces and launch an attack on Park’s KSPO team which, as evidenced in previous stages, would not have the cohesive ability to respond. This scenario, if successfully executed, would see the two squads gapping the field with sufficient time to allow Candelario and Richeze to fight it out for yellow, whilst devouring all available time bonuses.
Instead, Nippo and Optum chose the more practical option two; invest all energy into containment of breaks, keep the peloton together until the end, then lead out their respective yellow jersey prospects for final time bonuses in the bunch gallop. Still, nothing was certain. Whilst Candelario and Park were stage winners, both victories were by-products of successful breakaways. In a mass finish situation, all three men – Candelario, Park and Richeze – appeared equal, with each securing top five bunch sprint finishes in the race so far.
The unremarkable urban parcours offered virtually no strategical or topographical assistance to breakaways, but this didn’t prevent Jelly Belly’s Charles Huff and Seoul Cycling’s Joon Yong Seo from launching themselves down the road only metres into the stage. The pair gained 20” after 6.5 kilometres, whilst the peloton, under the duress of chasing, narrowed and grew in length.
After 15.2 kilometres of racing, an ambiguously-marked intersection resulted in riders straying onto the wrong side of a divided motorway; so a temporary rolling neutralisation was enforced, allowing mis-directed riders to regroup on the correct side of the road. Two kilometres further down the road, the stage was again opened for racing.
Approaching the intermediate sprint at 33.8km, Hong Kong’s King Lok Cheung (Hong Kong National Team) was first to challenge his 108 companions. Cheung established a 200-metre gap, but Champion System’s Jaan Kirsipuu stormed past, with several riders immediately on his wheel and the peloton splattered across the road behind.
Smashing apart the field behind him, former blue jersey Sun Jae Jang (Korean National Team), trumped Ho Ting Kwok (Hong Kong National Team), Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo) and Ken Hanson (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies) in the intermediate sprint. This served as a launch pad for front chasers Ying Hon Yeung (Hong Kong National Team), Alexander Khatuntsev (Rusvelo), Sung Jun Kang (Korea National Team) and Michael Cuming (Rapha Condor-Sharp) to form an attacking group.
The four men dangled 300 metres in front of the peloton for several kilometres along the dual-lane motorway; perhaps unaware they were progressively descending to the finish, 60 metres lower in elevation than the starting point of their attack. Admirably, in spite of being outnumbered 26:1, the leaders made it to within five kilometres of the finish before they were absorbed by the chasing peloton.
As Misari Motorboat Racing Park – host site of rowing competitions in Seoul’s 1998 Summer Olympics - drew near, last year’s points jersey winner, Paul Odlin, sent his Subway Cycling team mates to the front in the hope he could salvage a result from an otherwise disappointing week.
At the same time, Team Optum’s race strategy was unravelling. Caught out by final-kilometre technicalities that were not apparent on paper, Candelario was unable to reach Hanson’s wheel in time to launch his own sprint. Having faced a similar situation in stage seven, Hanson again rose to the challenge; edging out Alexander Serebrayakov (Team Type 1 – Sanofi) and Chan Jae Jang (Terengganu Cycling Team) for the stage win, and handing his team its third stage victory this week.
When approached for comment several minutes after he’d finished the final sprint in 16th place, Park began to speak of his good fortune in finishing second on general classification. When informed that he had in fact kept his lead and won overall, an expression of genuine disbelief gradually broke into a broad smile.
FINAL RESULT - overall classification winners are:
Individual General Classification (Yellow jersey): Sung Baek Park (KSPO)
Points Classification (Sky Blue jersey): Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo)
Young Rider Classification (White jersey): Kyung Gu Jang (Arbö Gebrüder
Weiss-Orbendorfer)
King of the Mountains Classification (Polka-Dot jersey): Sung Baek Park (KSPO)
Teams General Classification: Team Optum by Kelly Benefit Strategies)
Asian Teams General Classification: Uzbekistan Suren Team
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Yellow still on Park but rival came closer
When general classification leader Sung Baek Park came forward to pull on a fresh yellow jersey at the end of today’s seventh Tour de Korea stage, it was the first time all day the KSPO rider had been visible for any significant period of time. Park was invisible for most of the 138km queen stage from Yeongju to Chungju; except for the final 300 metres, in which he tustled amongst the front to secure tenth place. Park’s passive presence was a complete contrast to his courageous breakaway effort yesterday, which saw him convincingly take yellow from compatriot Chang Jae Jang (Terengganu Cycling Team). By comparison, Park’s nearest rivals, Alexander Candelario (2nd on GC; Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies) and points classification leader Maximiliano Richeze (3rd on GC; Team Nippo) were active all day, with Richeze being especially vigilant; seizing a 3” time bonus in the intermediate sprint, 42 kilometers into the stage.
Rapha Condor-Sharp’s Kristian House is surely the rider most entitled to begrudge Park his reprieve from the bunch’s attention. The British rider was a constant factor at the head of the race, but finished the stage with little to show from it; apart from the crumbs that remained after three fellow escapees – Denys Karnulin (ISD-Lampre), Seung Kwon Lee (Seoul Cycling Team) and Seon Ho Park (Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Oberndorfer) - rode his wheel all the way to the top of the first KOM summit at 76.4 kilometers, then came around him at the last possible minute to take the most meaningful points.
House started the 5.6-kilometer climb with six other riders – Karnulin, Lee, Park, King Wai Cheung (Hong Kong National Team), Kun Jiang (Champion System Pro Cycling Team) and Michael Friedman (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies) – but managed to open up a 300-400m gap by the time he reached the bottom of the descent.
Veering right onto a wide, rolling, motorway section, House continued to power ahead, splintering the 30 riders that had rejoined off the KOM summit earlier. Only Jesse Anthony (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies), Hyo Suk Cheo (Geumsan Ginseng Cello), King Lok Cheung (Hong Kong National Team) and Anatoliy Pakhtusov (ISD-Lampre) were strong enough to catch House over two kilometres of slightly-uphill road. The five men cooperated adequately, reaching the second KOM at 98.1 kilometres with a 1’35” advantage over the peloton. In the main field, Park sat at the very back whilst Jelly Belly Cycling and Team Nippo monopolized the workload up front.
House was better supported by his breakaway companions on the second KOM, with Cheo gaining maximum points to move into third on the overall climber’s classification. With the last 40 kilometres into Chungju dropping 500 metres in elevation, it seemed unlikely House’s small break could resist the urgency of the fragmenting bunch behind. RTS Racing’s Jai Crawford and Mohammad Gharehbaghipouri (Uzbekistan Suren Team) did their best to bridge to the lead group, but only came within 40” before being swept up by the peloton, which had also swallowed a 17-man break enroute.
Progressively, the House group’s lead fell. At 30 kilometres to go, the six leaders had a time gap of 1’15”, but this gap halved with every additional ten kilometers traveled; with only 6.7 kilometres remaining, the peloton made contact. As House made his way back to the team hotel empty-handed - having finished 31st in the bunch sprint - Sung Baek Park waited at Chungju’s World Martial Arts Park to receive his yellow jersey; arguably the freshest-looking of the classification leaders atop the winners podium.
LEADERBOARD - going into stage eight, the classification leaders are:
Yellow Jersey (Individual GC): Sungbaek Park (KSPO)
Sky Blue Jersey (Points Classification): Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo)
White Jersey (Young Rider Classification): Kyung Gu Jang (Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Orbendorfer)
Polka dot Jersey (King of the Mountains Classification): Sungbaek Park (KSPO)
Substitute wear by Denys Karnulin (ISD-Lampre)
Teams General Classification: Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies
QUOTES FROM INTERVIEW WITH ALEXANDER CANDELARIO
Alexander Candelario (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies) 5th in stage 7; 2nd on General Classification
“In the last 500 metres, we (Team Optum) had (Ken) Hanson and (Michael) Friedman doing the leadout. We were a little far behind on the left-hand side and obviously it was a bit chaotic. Friedman passed most of the guys then Team Type 1 hit out with about 300m to go. Hanson went, as the idea was he would lead me out for a time bonus, but we mis-timed it and got the stage win.
Jelly Belly Cycling probably did 95% of the work to catch the five leaders and Nippo had a couple of guys up there too. The yellow jersey did absolutely no work at the front; he pretty much did no work all day. He rode fairly strong on the climbs, but in between that and on the flats he was at the back.
The Hong Kong National Team rode the second climb pretty much up front, and the Geumsan Ginseng Cello guys seemed to attack (Park), but they also set a tempo; seeming quite happy riding to be on the front of the first climb. On the way down, it was all Jelly Belly, Champion System and Nippo.
Obviously, everyone is so close on GC that they think they can get a time bonus and take the jersey; but it’s very interesting that people seem so prepared to help the (current) yellow jersey out. You would think teams that are strong enough would try to create a racing dynamic that would pare it down, and then use that to create an advantage. It’s pretty incredible. I don’t think you can do any other race anywhere in the world were you don’t do any work and still retain the yellow jersey.
At this point, tomorrow’s stage probably favours the Nippo guys. Maximiliano (Richeze, 3rd on GC) is a very fast sprinter and he‘s within a few seconds of me, so it’s going to be a difficult situation for us to beat him in a time bonus. I need a harder stage; I’m fast, but I’m not a pure sprinter. We have a great lead-out strategy, so hopefully we can time it a little better tomorrow and pick up that extra six seconds or so.
The chances of getting a break and staying away tomorrow are pretty minimal. Everything goes back to that cancelled stage (four); because of that, the GC is going to be all about time bonuses. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the way it goes.”
(copyright Tour de Korea/Aaron Lee)
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KSPO’s Park restores Tour de Korea spirit
2007 Tour de Korea champion and multiple stage winner Sung Baek Park (KSPO) returned to his former glory in style today; taking a decisive stage victory in Yeongju and slipping into the yellow jersey by a lean three seconds over Optum’s Alexander Candelario. Chan Jae Jang, keeper of the leader’s jersey since stage three, now seems to have faded out of contention, after finishing almost two minutes adrift of KSPO’s charismatic star.
Park dominated the Tour de Korea in its first year as an accredited UCI stage race, in 2007. Since that year, the 27-year-old KSPO Cycling Team rider has racked up an impressive record of placings in major UCI races throughout Japan, Thailand and Taiwan; whilst also immersing himself in European racing, via a stint with the now-defunct EQA-Meitan Hompo-Graphite Design team during 2009.
Park’s victory came as welcome relief to race organizer, KSPO; after yesterday’s incident-plagued stage, KSPO was at pains to take all measures necessary to ensure the safe passage of 109 starters along the rolling 164-kilometer course. As a result, only six motorbikes - comprising four marshals, the official photographer and official videographer - were permitted to operate within the peloton’s boundaries. Combined with a heightened awareness and caution amongst the convoy, rider’s cautiously opened up to the race ahead.
None of the several breakaways that ensued within the first 30 minutes of racing stayed away, which meant a full peloton approached the first intermediate sprint at 23.4km. Nine riders, including three from KSPO, pulled ahead of the bunch to fight it out, with Team Nippo’s Maximiliano Richeze easing his way past Geumsan Ginseng Cello’s Cheung Gyo Jeong, KSPO’s Ki Ju Lee and Rusvelo’s Rodriges Arguelyes (Rusvelo) to take maximum points. Somewhat unusually, Korea’s Sun Jae Jan looked off his game, finishing fifth.
Moving off the wide freeway and onto quieter roads bordering the impressive Nakdan Reservoir, riders were still enjoying a tailwind which pushed the bunch along at close to 45kph. Approaching the solitary categorized ascent at 94.7km, a group of 22 men – the merger of three separate breaks that had individually split from the peloton over the previous 50 kilometres – had stabilized their declining lead over the main field at 30”.
This leading group of Ki Hong Yoo, Hyo Suk Gong, Hyeong Min Choe (Geumsan Ginseng Cello), Ji Min Jung, Soon Yeong Kwon (KSPO), Thomas Soladay, Michael Friedman (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies), Mauro Richeze, Junya Sano (Nippo), Richard Lang, Richard Handley, Michael Cuming, Dean Downing (Rapha Condor-Sharp), Lee Rodgers (RTS), Peter Latham (Subway), Ying Hon Yeung (Hong Kong National Team), Kinsan Wu (Champion System Pro Cycling Team), Valery Valynin (Rusvelo), Tom Robinson (Genesys Wealth Advisers), Denys Karnulin (ISD-Lampre), Ricardo van der Velde (Jelly Belly Cycling), Kyung Gu Jang (Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Oberndorfer) rumbled through the feed zone and shed almost 25% of its numbers on the 1.2km ascent to 260m.
Choe bested Karnulin, Gong and Jang over the summit and continued to assert his power by pulling away from his peers along the slightly downhill valley floor. Winner of the ITT at Guangzhou’s 2010 Asian Games, 22-year-old Choe had his work cut out to sustain his effort in the changeable cross winds. However, Choe’s limits were revealed when another large group of more than 20 riders bridged to his wheel.
While the main field began recovering from a two minutes deficit, race radio reported veteran Tour de France stage-winner Jaan Kirsipuu (Champion System Pro Cycling Team) was amongst a selection of seven riders that had broken free of the Choe leading group. Joining Kirsipuu were King Wai Cheung (HKG), Friedman, Lang, Westley Gough (Subway Cycling Team), Gong and Joon Yong Seo (Seoul Cycling Team). Sadly, the sight of Kirsipuu in a final dash to the line was not to be, as the peloton swept up all leaders on the road in time for the second and final intermediate sprint at 140.6km. Richeze appeared to pull through effortlessly again, thus building sufficient points to claim the blue points jersey.
The intermediate dash provided the seed for the day’s final breakaway, which contained Jesse Anthony (Optum), Friedman, Max Richeze, Downing, Jai Crawford (RTS Racing), Gharehbaghipouri (Uzbekistan Suren Team), Gong, Park, Seo, Choi, Cheung, Aaron Kemps (Champion System), Khatuntsev (Rusvelo), Aldo Ilesic (Team Type 1 - Sanofi), Salehian (Azad University Cross Team), Pakhtusov (ISD), Kyung Gu Jang and Jakub Kratochvila (both Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Orbendorfer).
With 25 kilometers to go, and with three chasing groups closing from behind, Jang and Park jumped away in what first appeared to be a naïve act of brinkmanship. Remarkably, the pair’s lead grew to more than 30” and remained there to within five kilometers of the finish line. Tantalizingly, with its multiple sweeping bends and rises, the final two kilometers would conceal a break with such a lead from its chasers.
Jang gritted his teeth for a final long pull at the front, while his compatriot held his wheel. At 500m, Park looked back, quickly analyzed the situation and attacked. Having spent his best effort on the road earlier, Jang tried admirably to stay with Park to no avail; the national 4,000m team pursuit track cyclist from KSPO had calculated his reserves brilliantly. Park soared home 3” ahead of Jang and 13” ahead of the main bunch; led over the line by Korean National Team’s Keon Woo Park; a reassuring one, two, three for Korea’s biggest professional road cycling race.
LEADERBOARD- going into stage seven, the classification leaders are:
Yellow Jersey (Individual GC): Sungbaek Park (KSPO)
Sky Blue Jersey (Points Classification): Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo)
White Jersey (Young Rider Classification): Kyung Gu Jang (Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Orbendorfer)
Polka dot Jersey (King of the Mountains Classification): Sungbaek Park (KSPO)
Substitute wear by Hyo Suk Gong(Geumsan Ginseng Cello)
Teams General Classification: Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies
POST-STAGE QUOTES
Sung Baek Park, yellow jersey
“Yeongsu is my team’s home town, so I know the course. In the final two kilometres, I knew that I could win. I looked back and I could see the gap was too big; it looked like 30 or 40 seconds. In the final 500 metres, I thanked Kyung Gu; I was on his wheel until that point. This was the first time we’ve sprinted against each other in Tour de Korea. Normally, we would be in the peloton at the finish.
I won the overall classification in 2007. I hope to do the same again this year. Chan Jae (Jang) is a very strong guy, but I’m not sure if he can regain his lead. I will try my best tomorrow. I would like to concentrate on the European races; strong guys, at the top of their game, race them. There are also more chances and more teams in Europe; I would like to make contact with a big team. Three years ago, when I raced with the Meipo (EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design) team, I had the chance to improve, but the racing was too difficult for me; too chaotic, everyone pushing. But now that I’ve improved, I hope that I can get into the European ProTour; that’s the victory I most want.”
Elmar Hantzsch, Team Manager Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Oberndorfer
“I think Korean riders are not far behind the Japanese riders like Fumiyuku Beppu and Mizakawi Takashi. The whole Asian scene is developing really fast and Korea is, I would say, one of the leading countries next to Japan, which is a step ahead. Asian riders now have their own scene, which is developing quickly. In Germany for example we only have one one-day race at the WorldTour level (Vattenfall Cyclassics). In Asia, China is about to have two WorldTour races. I think Asia will catch up to America first and then Europe a few years later.
I met Kyung Gu Jang in the Tour de Hokkaido last year. There, he had the yellow jersey until the last stage. He lost the yellow in the last two kilometres of the ITT. I saw the race and it was pretty hard because of the mountains and the weather conditions. I thought ‘this guy must be a hard guy’. He was 21 at the time, and he almost won the race.
My team riders are telling me that he’s always riding at the front and always attacking. For example, today he was in all the front groups. I’m sure his bunch-riding skills must be awesome to get into those positions.
In Korea, cycling is developing quite well. Why shouldn’t I pick a Korea rider over a European rider? It was a good opportunity for both parties involved. Of course, language is definitely an issue. I give him small written notes, which works well, and he also shares a room with (Arbö team-mate) Seon Ho Park. His English is improving and he is talented in learning languages. It’s not a big issue, more of a challenge.
I hope they will come to Europe in May and stay until the Olympic games. Seon Ho already has his ticket for the 4,000 team pursuit and maybe we’ll go straight from the European races to London. For Kyung Gu, it depends if he will get a ticket for the Olympics. Today, he gets one step closer and I hope he will stay in Europe, because that’s where he will develop in terms of dynamics, technique and bunch behaviour; the deep professional skills that are required, basically.
Kyung Gu hasn’t yet told me his greatest strength as a rider. But maybe he can tell me later in the year when he learns a little more English! I think his dream is the Olympic Games and also riding the big races in Europe; not necessarily the Tour de France, but the high level 1.1 and 2.1 races. Our Korean riders are always reading the ProCycling magazines and they idolize the European riders in them. I think they can accomplish that level too.
Kyung Gu is definitely a great climber; that’s what I saw in Hokkaido. He’s third on general classification, only seven seconds down, and also third in KOM. He’s also motivated to keep the white jersey for the best young rider. He doesn’t need to have the aim to win the GC; we need to be realistic. First, we just want to retain what we have.
I’m sure we will have a big article in the Austrian newspapers after the Tour de Korea. It’s a nice story to read, because it’s not a normal Austrian team. We are a truly international team. I am German, the mechanic is Japanese, we have riders from Romania, Czech Republic, Austria and Korea. I think this global culture is good for our existing sponsors and for attracting new sponsors.”
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Leader board unchanged in traumatic stage
After yesterday’s fourth stage was cancelled, everyone in this year’s Tour de Korea hoped for a great race today. The convoy rolled out amidst the promised fine weather and the 146.8km stage finished with no changes amongst the classification leaders. Though incumbent race leader Chan Jae Jang crashed heavily in the final bunch kick, he still retains his yellow jersey due to UCI regulations that protect a rider’s place in the group should he crash within the final three kilometres.
The day started ominously, in spite of the near-perfect conditions. Surrounded by blue skies, and on dry roads, the first incident occurred less than one kilometre into the 6.7 kilometre neutral zone of stage five; a local motorbike marshal rammed into Jaan Kirsipuu’s (Champion System Pro Cycling Team) Fuji racing bike so hard, that its carbon fibre rear wheel broke into four pieces. After a change of helmet and bike, the robust Estonian was ready to go again. Subsequently, the stage was almost 30 minutes behind schedule when it officially opened.
Kyung Go Jang (Arbö Gebruder Weiss-Orbendorfer), Emerson Oronte (Jelly Belly Cycling) and Hyeong Min Choe (Geumsan Ginseng Cello) were the first riders to insist on a long-range break. Though they fell back without fanfare, the trio’s quick establishment of a lead enticed a further ten riders to try for themselves. 20 kilometres into the stage, and after a brisk 190m vertical gain up the uncategorized Deulmokjae Summit, riders began breaking free of the peloton and a ten-man group formed.
The pace set by Nic Hamilton (Jelly Belly Cycling), Jakub Kratochvila (Arbö Gebruder Weiss-Orbendorfer), Thomas Soladay (Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies), Kristian House and Richard Lang (both Rapha Condor-Sharp), Paul Odlin (Subway Cycling Team), Amirull Mazuki (Terengganu Cycling Team), Se Yong Oh and Ki Hong Yoo (Geumsan Ginseng Cello), combined with the stiff left-to-right tailwind, contributed to the first 50 kilometres of racing being covered in a little over an hour; by which point the ten riders were part of the main field again.
As breaks continued to ebb and flow in the strong crosswinds, a decisive-looking split occurred in the peloton. From their position in the front echelon, the leading twenty riders managed to pull away from the bunch, gaining 45” by the base of the day’s first categorized climb.
Demonstrating his fine climbing form, Korea’s Sungbaek Park (KSPO) seized maximum points and, 39 kilometres later, he repeated the feat on the second, and final, KOM of the stage. With a seven point lead over Hyo Suk Gong (Geumsan Ginseng Cello) in the KOM classification, Park’s lead grew to an almost unassailable advantage.
As the majority of the field came back together off the final KOM descent, the likelihood of a bunch sprint grew. But, in a twist that nobody could have anticipated, the race ground to a halt 30 kilometres from the finish on a wide straight motorway. A motorbike marshal, with a photographer riding pillion, had sped past the bunch, clipping Rapha Condor-Sharp’s Kristian House before losing control and smashing into the back of Yuriy Agarkov (ISD – Lampre).
Remarkably, all riders, including Agarkov and House, were able to continue the stage after race officials fielded the views of team managers and subsequently cancelled the intermediate sprint ahead. Having sustained serious injuries, the motorbike pilot and his passenger were taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital.
The final drama of the day came during the final sprint into Gumi. With the peloton all together after the post-crash regroup, a large bunch came thundering towards the line. Amidst the maelstrom, a barrier was clipped and dozens of riders spilled to the tarmac. From a small selection of riders that were not caught in the resulting pile-up, Alexander Serebrayakov (Team Type 1 – Sanofi), held straight for a narrow win over Maximiliano Richeze (Team Nippo) and Aaron Kemps (Champion System Pro Cycling Team).
LEADERBOARD & POST-STAGE QUOTES FOLLOW
Going into stage six, the classification leaders are:
Yellow Jersey (Individual GC): Chan Jae Jang (Terengganu Cycling Team)
Blue Jersey (Points Classification): Sun Jae Jang (Korean National Team)
White Jersey (Young Rider Classification): Kyoung Ho Park (Seoul Cycling Team)
Polka dot Jersey (King of the Mountains Classification): Sungbaek Park (KSPO)
Teams General Classification: Team Optum presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies
STAGE QUOTES
Chan Jae Jang pre-race
After yesterday’s cancelled stage, it’s good to have nice conditions again. Today may be very important. I need to keep my stamina because the next two stages could be difficult. Maybe after tomorrow, the race is decided. I don’t know if I can win the stage today, but I like the course. I hope today is a bunch sprint. If it is, I’ll try for the stage win.
Chan Jae Jang post-race [via translator]
I’m feeling a lot of pain now, because of the crash. I don’t remember what happened; I lost consciousness. All I need to do right now is defend my position for the next two days and then I’ll reach my goal. I’m very determined to reach my goal.
I remember that I was on the right hand side, speeding up all the way over the top and suddenly on the left lane two riders came to the right lane, changing their position, and those two riders crashed. That’s all I remember. I don’t know who the riders were who caused the crash.
For now, I am considering every rider as an equal adversary; that is because I am only in front by 30 seconds over most riders. The rider that worries me the most is myself. Two days from now, we have the hardest stage of Tour de Korea and it is going to be so hard with my injuries that I’m worried I might not be able to make it. But I’ll try.
I’m not worried about the professionalism of the organizer’s deciding to bring in the motorbike rider that caused the crash, but I’m worried that riders from other countries might think that the Tour de Korea looks a bit unprofessional. I’m worried about the image. I’m confident that changes will be made that will make Tour de Korea more significant than it is right now.
There are some very talented riders in Korea. When I get the yellow jersey, there is one thing I’d like to say. That is many of the talented Korean riders are only residing in Korea; they are not going worldwide. I want them to have the opportunity to practice their skills outside Korea. That is what I really want.
When I was in Europe, for example, I did more than 120 races in two years. In Korea, we have only 10 races in one year. I think this is the main problem. I would like Korea to have more UCI races like Tour de Korea.
There are no top professional riders in Korea. I would like to be the first ProTour cyclist from Korea; so young riders in Korea would be inspired by this and maybe have dreams to become a rider like me one day. That kind of situation would make me the happiest; more than a single victory.
See also http://www.coventrycity-mad.co.uk/sngl/edb3/tour_of_korea_latest_741596/index.shtml