Asian Games 2018: After Esow Alban’s high, hope springs for cycling medal in Indonesia

Esow Alban’s surge to silver at the Junior Track Cycling World Championships came in Switzerland early on Friday.

Teen cyclist Esow Alben scripted history by claiming India’s first ever medal — a silver in Keirin — at the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships.

Esow Alban’s surge to silver at the Junior Track Cycling World Championships came in Switzerland early on Friday. Expectations of a maiden cycling medal at the Asian Games, have followed in the slipstream in tropical Jakarta. The young sensation from Nicobar islands, in Keirin – a track event – is expected to go up against top cyclists from Hong Kong, China, Japan and Korea – hoping to make the finals on August 31, in what is a virgin sport for Indians. But it’s not just the junior World No.1 with three gold medals in the recent past in junior meets, who has been training in Germany, that has gotten the contingent excited at Jakarta. India is expected to get onto the bike trail of medals on the back of a low-profile but high-tech cycling program that has taken off in the country.

“We’re looking at four events with keen interest in Jakarta. Medals are tough to come in cycling, but for the first time, India can be in real contention. In another year’s time, the sport will take off,” says Onkar Singh of the Cycling Federation, even as the Rawamangun facility awaits an Indian medal in the sport – a novelty – with bated breath.

Apart from men’s keirin, Team sprint in Women, Individual Pursuit in Men as well as Women’s Keirin, should hold Indian fans’ interest. Deborah Herold, the Andaman sensation of cycling from a couple of years ago, has battled stagnation of form from the last season, and emerged as a contender in the team sprint. “There was a bit of plateau in her career, but she’s broken the barrier of 22 seconds this year, and that could make the difference,” Onkar says. Paired with her are likely to be either Sonali Chanu Mayanglambam of Manipur or Aleena Reji of Kerala. Chanu, just two years into cycling, has shown tremendous progress this year and is posting timings equal to Deborah’s in a very short time.

READ | From Andamans, 17-year-old Esow Alben cycles to world number two

Perhaps the dark horse in the whole tale is Services’ Manjeet Singh of Balu, Haryana, who was picked early by the federation and has benefitted from a psychologists’ interventions to help him dream of going above his 10th place at the Asian Championships. He was 24th at the CWG, but could spring a surprise at the Asiad, according to Onkar. Indian sprinters on the other hand, have been aided by a specific weight training program to strengthen their legs. But it is the juniors program of the last two years that is pushing India towards a breakthrough medal, even sniffing one at Jakarta and its brand-new velodrome. It’s what pushed Esow who missed gold by a mere 0.017 seconds, from 149th in the world to Keirin’s reigning No.1 colt. In fact, Deborah’s younger brother has also made rapid strides in the juniors program.

It’s helped that scooter and motorcycle major – Honda have come on board and are pumping in money into Indian cycling. “What we consciously decided to do was pick a child into the program not based on cycling, but on physical parameters and capabilities. We are going to the cycling pockets – Kerala, North East, Haryana, Rajasthan and the Andamans and have scouted out 13-14 year-olds for our Delhi academy. You’ll see our junior bench strength at the World’s next year,” he adds.

In what is essentially a sport of man vs machine, the federation has also gone from owning a mere 5-7 bikes to a fleet of over four dozen. “But yes, we’re going about scouting talent in a far more sophisticated and scientific manner. We’re actually looking at growth of their thigh and hip muscles, and picking them on their high jump and long jump skills as well as 1,500m on walk bikes,” he ends.

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Esow & Co (there’s also the grandly named 19-year-old Appolonious from Nicobar and aptly-titled Bike Singh Athokpam) will fly down to Jakarta at the end of the junior World’s. In Jakarta, they will hope, Indian cycling takes off.