HK's Wong a marked man after impressive Tour win

Hong Kong national coach Shen Jinkang fears his protege, Wong Kam-po, will be a marked man in the Asian Championships later this year after the territory's finest rider started 1997 with a bang.

Wong further enhanced his growing reputation by claiming the overall title in the five-leg inaugural Tour of South China Sea yesterday at the Macau Jockey Club.

The Hong Kong number one finished seventh in the final leg of the Tour, a 40-lap, 44.4-kilometre criterium race, but he did more than enough to win the overall title from Malaysia's Tsen Seong Hoong, his nearest challenger, by a handy 47 seconds.

'Everybody in Asia knows who Wong Kam-po is now. He has made a name for himself and for Hong Kong and it is not going to be easy for him in June's Asian Championships in Iran where he is likely to start as one of the favourites,' said former Chinese national coach Shen.

Wong's triumph is the latest in a long line of success enjoyed by the brilliant 24-year-old, who last year won the All-China National Championship and the Tour of Taiwan titles. Now, his notoriety may work against him when he competes in the Asian Championship featuring the region's top riders.

'The bottom line is that, although Wong is a very promising rider, he is not going to get much support from his teammates because they are not up to his level. Wong's teammate Chan Lung helped a bit today but he could not sustain the challenge and he gradually dropped back in the field,' said Shen.

'I'm sure a lot of the other Asian riders will be gunning after Wong. It's going to be very hard for our best rider to win the road race in Iran but there is always hope,' said Shen.