Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) chief Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, along with three other national Olympic committee (NOC) presidents who also head their cycling federations, was recognized by the International Cycling Union (UCI) during its Congress on Thursday in Glasgow, Scotland.
The most prominent figure among the cycling and NOC heads was UCI president David Lappartient, who now leads France’s Olympic committee, a position believed to be a prelude to his potential succession as International Olympic Committee president after Thomas Bach.
“It’s a rare and historic event and opportunity,” said Tolentino about the ongoing UCI World Championships, where the sports’ governing body packed 13 cycling disciplines in 11 days in Scotland.
“This won’t be happening again soon,” added Tolentino, noting that next year’s world championships in Zurich would only feature road events.
The UCI’s 192nd Congress, attended by the international federation’s 203 member countries in Glasgow, had the recognition of these officials on its agenda.
The UCI, founded 123 years ago on April 14, 1900, is a longstanding organization in the world of cycling.
Tolentino also had the opportunity to get close and personal with Lappartient and former UCI president Pat McQuaid.
Lappartient was one of the commissaries in the Asian road and track cycling championships hosted by the Philippines at the Amoranto Velodrome and Subic in 1995, while McQuaid considered the Philippines his second home in the mid and late 1990s when, as UCI’s road commission head, he worked on transforming the Marlboro Tour into a major international race in Southeast Asia.
