Calderon secures Tour team crown for Pinoys

Despite allowing a foreigner to win the overall individual honors, Filipino riders made sure they won’t be denied the team crown. While Tour de France veteran David McCann of Ireland topped the four-day race, Joel Calderon made sure the Pinoy bets won’t get blanked in Le Tour de Filipinas 2010 when he led Smart to the team general classification title.

The four-stage Tour – sanctioned by the International Cycling Union (Union Cycliste Internationale, UCI) – ended on Tuesday at the Baywalk of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority in Olongapo City. Calderon and Team Smart where in the middle of the standings but made their move in the final two stages to beat their fancied foreign rivals and the nine other Filipino squads that competed in the four-day race. Calderon, the Team Smart skipper, completed a back-to-back victory of sorts as they also topped the 2009 Padyak Pinoy Tour of champions where he also emerged as the individual general classification champion. The Neil Barlis-coached Smart squad amassed a total time of 34 hours, 58 minutes and 13 seconds to beat American Vinyl by 4:23 and 7-Eleven by almost 10 minutes. Joining Calderon were assistant skipper Tomas Martinez, Emelito Atilano, Joseph Millanes, Jason Garillo, Oscar Rindole and Nicardo Guanzon. Calderon and Rindole also finished seventh (11:38:56 behind) and eighth (11:39:13 behind) in the general individual classification. McCann, the six-foot-four and 37-year-old three-time Irish national road race and five-time time-trial champion, had an aggregate time of 11:29:20 to win the general classification title. He finished 6:45 ahead of second-placer Lloyd Lucien Reynante of 7-Eleven and 6:47 over Team Pilipinas-Batang Tagaytay’s Baler Ravina. – GMANews.TV