Danny Caluag already had a feel of the track, with its eight-meter descent from a starting gate, complete with dirt, humps and S-bends, and he liked what he saw after suffering bruises on his arms, chest and shoulders on his first workout.
He had also worked out with top-class world riders, many of whom he had pitted his skills against, and others he knew little about in the most dangerous event of cycling.
Several of the riders here have seen action in Beijing the first time the event was held four years ago. The field includes Maris Strombergs of Latvia, who won the inaugural event, and Connor Fieldes, a multi-titled American now ranked second to absentee Sam Willoughby of Australia.
‘’They are all there, also enjoying the training. We always see each other in training and competing against each other,’’ said Caluag.
The 32-man field will be divided into four groups of eight in the quarterfinal. The top 16 from the quarterfinal advance to the semifinal.
The top eight step into the final where only one race will be held to determine the gold-silver-bronze medalists.
The final run will take only 37 to 39 seconds, a go-for-broke, devil-may-care race among the world’s toughest eight for cycling’s biggest trophy.
To reach the finals, Caluag, 25, needs to finish among the top eight to be able to get top seeding that will give him the advantage of playing lesser-ranked players in the 32-man quarterfinal heats the next day.
Better, it gives him the chance to pick a preferred starting gate, considered the comfort zone that helps the rider get a better starting maneuver from eight meters high. In swimming, the top two swimmers from the heats take the middle lanes in the finals, with the last six occupying the outer lanes, which in the past gave tankers the disadvantage of swimming against a surge of waves from the middle lane.
A rider consistently at the top has the first option at the same gate of his choice in the next phase, from the quarterfinal to the final. The gate selection order in subsequent runs in the quarterfinal, semifinal and final is determined by the points scored from the previous run.
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