MANILA – Ariana Dormitorio of the Philippines failed to live up to her top seeding after crashing in in the second lap of the five-lap race in the 18th Asian Games on Tuesday in Subang, Indonesia.
Ranked first in the 12-rider field, the Iloilo City native sustained a sprained quad muscle after hurting her left thigh and bombed out of the medal race in the women’s cross-country cycling.
Dormitorio, whose No. 100 ranking in the UCI made her the favorite in the race, was first out of the start line but two Chinese cyclists caught on early – eventual gold-silver medal winners Yao Bianwa (1:20.7) and Li Hongfeng (1:24.7).
The Filipina did not much have time to acclimatize with the race course. Her bike arrived in Indonesia Monday afternoon due to delayed flights after a runway accident at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
“Luck was not with me today,” said Dormitorio, 21. “Being here in Asian Games is such a great honor, and I can’t express how thankful I am to everyone who made this possible.”
“I know, I kept saying thank you but that’s just how I really feel! I feel happy! I also want to thank everyone who believed that I can achieve such things and I love you all for that. Hope I made my country proud,” she added.
Guimaras native Lee Denise Belgira and John Derrick Farr also failed to deliver medals after settling for identical sixth place finishes in women’s and men’s mountain bike cycling’s downhill events./PN
