Nguyen Truong Tai. — Photo dantri

HCM CITY (VNS) — Nguyen Truong Tai secured the eighth stage while Ho Huynh Van An stole the yellow jersey in the HCM City Television Cycling Cup yesterday.

Tai of Domesco Dong Thap Pharmacy finished the hilly 142km race from Nha Trang to Da Lat with a time of 4hr 26.01min, reaching an average speed of 32.028km/h.

Tai's teammate Le Ngoc Son came second, followed by Tran Thanh Dien from SunTek Sao Viet HCM City.

Yellow jersey wearer Dinh Quoc Viet of Sao Viet failed to maintain his top position as he was exhausted after climbing the two hills of Khanh Le and Giang Ly. He dropped to the fourth place in the overall rankings.

Cyclist An re-took the leading position with the strong support of his An Giang Plant Protection team. He spent 21:46.23 hours for the whole tour.

Huynh Van Thuan of ADC-Vinh Long Television came second. Phan Hoang Thai of Domesco Dong Thao was third.

"My yellow jersey today is a surprise because I didn't think Viet would drop it after his perfect performance in the past. My result today was mainly due to great contribution of teammates and coaches," said An.

Though losing the individual leading position, SunTek Sao Viet claimed the team ranking's top seat with a time of 63:55.07. Two runners-up were An Giang and Domesco Dong Thao.

Rider An is also leading the green jersey race with 70 points.

Today, the participants will compete in the ninth stage of 10 laps around Xuan Huong Lake in Da Lat City covering 51km. — VNS