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Hong Kong cyclist Cheung King-lok scoops gold in the road race at the 2016 Asian Championships in Oshima, Japan. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Hong Kong golden boy Cheung King-lok lands place on leading world tour cycling team

Double Asian Championships gold medallist is awarded a spot with Orica GreenEdge

Double Asian Championships gold medallist Cheung King-lok received a timely boost in his preparation for the approaching Olympic Games in Rio when he was awarded a spot on world tour team Orica GreenEdge.

The Hong Kong Cycling Association announced their 25-year-old rider will join the Australia-based team in order to gain more experience and top-level exposure in the build-up to the Summer Games.
Promising star Cheung will join the Orica GreenEdge world tour outfit. Photo: Ben Pang

Cheung, who was crowned the road race and individual time trial champion in the Asian event in January, will become the second rider from Hong Kong to join a top-tier professional team.

READ MORE: Hong Kong to host cycling’s world track championships in to mark 20th anniversary of handover in 2017

Wu Kin-san, who represented Hong Kong at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, had a short spell with Lampre in 2006, while retired Choi Ki-ho, Cheung’s partner in many of the international events, was also given the opportunity to join GreenEdge but turned down the offer before fading out of the international scene in 2014.
Cheung competed at the recently concluded Track Cycling World Championships in London. Photo: AFP

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Cheung would have little problem adapting to world class competition after demonstrating his quality in the Asian Championships when he beat Yukiya Arashiro of Japan to second place.

Arashiro is the first rider from Japan to complete the three grand tours and is currently with Lampre-Merida.

There are 18 world tour teams for the 2016 season. GreenEdge’s Michael Matthews is currently leading the general classification at the Paris-Nice race after four stages.

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