Victor, the victor

By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

1996 Marlboro Tour winner Victor Espiritu added to his laurels on the same year by winning the very prestigious “Rookie of the Year” plum. He was the third cyclist in the history of Philippine multi-stage cycling racing to bag that feat. The first was Tarlaqueño Cornelio Padilla, Jr. in 1966 and our very own the late Romeo Bonzo in 1983. And at 20 years of age, he was the second youngest rider to win the Tour, next to Padilla at 19.

Prior to that achievement, Victor, in January of the same year, landed second overall in the Tour de Langkawi in the Asian category, the best that any Filipino ever achieved during their ten years of campaign.

The annual ten-day Tour de Langkawi, as many might not be familiar, is a road battle of some of the best cyclists in the world being held in Malaysia and now considered the fourth most prestigious bicycle road race on earth and the biggest in Asia, according to UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale), the world gorverning body for cycling.

In the 1997 Marlboro Tour, defending champion Victor led up to the fifteenth stage of the seventeenth road saga, but on the following day, the short but crucial 40-kilometer ‘race against the clock’ proved disastrous for him as he suffered a spill and Victor cracked to relinquish the lead won by Hongkong ace and UCI 30th world rated Wong Kam Po. Victor eventually finished second overall but garnered the “King of the Mountains” and the “Best Young Rider” plums.

In the 1998 Marlboro Tour, Victor landed third overall behind Valenzuela   City’s son Warren Davadilla and Nueva Vizcaya’s pride Carlo Guieb and successfully defended his “King of the Mountains” title. At his young age of 23, he was chosen anew as the “Best Young Rider” of the year with four stage victories. Defending titlist Wong Kam Po finished ninth overall.

In the 1998 Asian Games individual mass start race, Victor, along with Wong Kam Po and a Japanese rider, successfully escaped from the main field of elite riders up to the finish. But because of his deficiency in sprinting capability, Victor was outsprinted on the last 300 meters to win the bronze medal. Wong Kam Po, still ranked as the world’s 30th best cyclist, won the gold and the Japanese for the silver.

The annual Marlboro Tour became defunct for good in 1999 but Victor continued to participate yearly in the Tour de Langkawi representing our country’s PAGCOR cycling squad.

It was off-and-on for him and unluckily never accomplished his big goal to become a Tour de Langkawi champion even just in the Asian category. His last participation was in 2005 and landed as one of Asia’s top ten’s best.

The Philippine delegation was cut off since then and until now because of financial constraints and mainly due to conflicts between PAGCOR’s cycling team conflict and national cycling officials. Because the two groups could not see eye to eye, the Philippines stopped sending a contingent to the Langkawi Tour. And this is also one of the reasons why you don’t  see Victor anymore in our national annual Tour. It’s a long, sad story.

The conflict has been resolved last year and Victor joined this year’s national team selection race and also this year’s Tour Pilipinas qualifying event held last  February 12-13 where he placed second overall to his former teammate Lucien Llyod Reynante. His latest victory was the annual Mangaldan bikefest called this year as “Werweran Katorse” held February 25, pocketing the P10,000 top prize plus summit wins and a trophy.

The Malabon-born Victor, now 31, works in the Philippine Army Special Services with the rank of sergeant. He’s married to the former Christine Cruz and they have a four-year old son named Victor Cristi Espiritu.

We will see the rejuvenated Victor on this year’s Tour Pilipinas tentatively to start April 15. I believe the more skilled and matured Victor has gotten back his old form and even improved his power and ready to conquer again our national highways.

Let’s wait and see.

(For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/sports-eye/)

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