SUNBANG, Indonesia, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese riders overcame inferior start and crash to win the gold and silver medals at the men's mountain bike cross-country race of the Asian Games on Tuesday.
Ma Hao finished the seven-lap 31.5-kilometer ride first in one hour 34 mintues and 58 seconds, one minute and four seconds ahead of teammate Lv Xianjing. Kirill Kazantsev of Kazakhstan finished third in 1:37.30.
Ma, who started at the third row, attacked after the third lap and overtook Kazantsev halfway of that lap.
"I knew nothing about this Kazakhstan rider. He held the lead in the first two laps, but with time going on, he was losing speed. And at the third lap, I got the chance to surpass him," he said.
Ma said he was sad to see Lv crashed at the second lap and his bike was overrun by a chasing rider.
"His bike's speed variator suffered some damage and could not function well. We always fought together as team, but this time I knew I had to fight alone," Ma said.
"I was happy that he could hold on and finish second, he did something incredible," he said.
