Sports Eye
A vital union for Pinoy cyclists
By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.
THE last of the Marlboro Tours was run in 1998 and won by the diminutive Valenzuela City resident Warren Davadilla. After that, many national tours emerged after three years of absence in multi-stage racing but with different titles. The first was in 2002, the Tour of Calabarzon.
This year, the fabled Tour of Luzon returned and was conducted on April 13-19. Another one is about to be run — this is the more famous and prestigious bikefest called Padyak Pinoy. Sadly, so much is left wanting in how the big races are being done since 2007. We saw on TV last year how the officials of PhilCycling, the national governing body of cycling, were exposed for their allegedly wrong-doings in the federation. The case is now pending at the table of the Ombudsman.
The national cycling scenario turned from bad to worse last year when some well-known annual tour organizers conducted two-stage qualifying races and collected a sum of P350 from each participant for their license kuno and entry fee. But no Tour was done. Everything just went kaput.
After the big race held last month, many of the participants came to me fuming about their misadventures during the race. They said they were not given the right prizes that were promised them for the individual overall standing and the stage awards.
Aside from that, they said the awarding ceremony was postponed three times. They said they knew something was fishy about it.
Two days after they finally received their rewards, majority of the big names in Philippine cycling came to me, texted me, saying that it’s high time that they form a union in order to have a united force, not to let anybody use them and not to be exploited by crooks and tyrant organizers. They said “kapag puno na ang salop, kakalusin na ang bigas”, borrowing the famous words of the late FPJ when he starred in the movie of the same title.
Having been an activist during my school days and a fighter for a great cause, the cyclists with their superiors in tow, have invited me to be one of the officials of the planned group. I neither said yes nor no to them. I just said I am simply inclined to support them after listening to their grievances but will continue to weigh the pros and cons of the situation.
Of course, I have to consult my lawyer also, former Pangasinan governor Oscar M. Orbos. I believe he knows better than us.
To form a “rebel” group for a great cause is not to rebel at all. As written in the Old Testament of the Good Book, God’s prophet Moses, who used to be the prince of Egypt, was used and sent by God the father Yahweh to return to Egypt. His ultimate mission was to free the slaves from the hands of tyrant Pharaoh Rameses. Moses and his blood mates turned rebels against the kingdom of Egypt for a great cause and successfully journeyed to the ‘promised land’ now called “Israel.” And the rebels became heroes in the eyes of God. You can find this in the pages of Exodus.
Thus, to form a union group and even to be labeled as rebels is not bad at all. They can be called heroes too, even without the command of the Lord. We are not the people of tyrants but the people of Moses. So, I believe the plan will push through for the good of the cyclists and Philippine cycling as a whole, with or without my participation. Amen.
