Feng Chun-kai

Feng Chun-kai
Feng in 2013.
Personal information
Full nameFeng Chun-kai
Born (1988-11-02) 2 November 1988 (age 35)
Miaoli County, Republic of China (ROC)
Height1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight68 kg (150 lb)
Team information
Current teamUtsunomiya Blitzen
Disciplines
RoleRider
Rider typeAll-rounder
Professional teams
2010–2012Action Cycling Team
2013Champion System
2014Team Gusto
2015–2016Lampre–Merida
2017–2022Bahrain–Merida[1][2]
2023–Utsunomiya Blitzen[3]
Medal record
Representing  Chinese Taipei
Men's road cycling
Asian Championships
Silver medal – second place 2019 Tashkent Time trial
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Tashkent Road race
East Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2013 Tianjin Road race
Men's track cycling
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place 2007 Bangkok Points race
Gold medal – first place 2012 Kuala Lumpur Scratch
Silver medal – second place 2010 Sharjah Pursuit
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Tenggarong Pursuit
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Astana Scratch

Feng Chun-kai (Chinese: 馮俊凱; pinyin: Féng Jùnjiā; born November 2, 1988) is a Taiwanese professional road and track cyclist.[4] He represented his nation Taiwan, as a 19-year-old, at the 2008 Summer Olympics and later won numerous medals in track cycling, specifically in the men's points race and individual pursuit, at the Asian Championships. Feng has also claimed five Taiwanese national titles in road cycling, and a prestigious gold medal at the 2013 East Asian Games in Tianjin

Racing career

Feng was born in Miaoli County. Considered one of Taiwan's most promising cyclists in his generation, Feng sought headlines on the international scene as he outsprinted Japanese duo Kazuhiro Mori and defending champion Makoto Iijima for the gold medal in men's point race at the 2007 Asian Cycling Championships in Bangkok, Thailand.[5]

Signifying an official start of his cycling career, Feng qualified for the Chinese Taipei squad in the men's points race at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing by receiving a wild card invitation from the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).[5][6] Feng dropped out of a grueling 25-km sprint race in a field of twenty-three cyclists after he slowed down his own pace on the track with only one extra lap needed to complete and a deduction of twenty points.[7][8]

Feng slowly emerged as a solid, all-around road and track rider, when he earned his first ever Taiwanese national road race title in 2009, and eventually mounted a fifth-place finish at the East Asian Games. By the following year, he joined with the Action Cycling Team as a professional and signed for three seasons in an exclusive contract.[9]

In 2011, Feng established a historic milestone in pro cycling as the first ever Asian rider to score three consecutive stage triumphs and grab the yellow jersey and a prestigious tournament title at the International Cycling Classic in the Midwest region of the United States.[10][11]

While still competing for the Action Cycling Team on his final season in the road race, Feng redrafted his efforts to chase for another medal again in the track cycling scene. At the 2012 Asian Cycling Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Feng ended his five-year drought by edging out Thailand's Turakit Boonratanathanakorn and home favorite Harrif Saleh on a sprint ride for the gold in the men's elite 10-kilometre (6.2-mile) scratch race.[12]

In early 2013, Feng joined his fellow Olympic riders Zachary Bell of Canada and Wu Kin San of Hong Kong for the Champion System pro cycling team. Feng started his initial season by participating in the Tour de Taiwan, where he took top honors in the mountain classification to secure the jersey.[13][14] Feng also reclaimed his fourth Taiwanese national road race title, and added the time trial title to his resume for the first time, since he won three straight championships from 2009 to 2011.[15] In October 2013, Feng picked up his gold medal on the strength of an early lead in the men's road race at the East Asian Games in Tianjin, China.[16][17]

In November 2014 Feng was announced as a signing for the Lampre–Merida team for the 2015 season, becoming the first Taiwanese rider to race on the UCI World Tour.[18]

Feng placed third in the 2019 Asian Road Cycling Championships, and qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics. He became the first Taiwanese cyclist to qualify for the Olympic men's road cycling event since Chen Chih-hao in 1996.[19]

Major results

2007
1st Points race, Asian Track Championships
2009
1st Road race, National Road Championships
1st Stage 2 Giant Cup
1st Stage 2 Tour of East Taiwan
3rd Individual pursuit, Asian Track Championships
5th Road race, East Asian Games
2010
1st Road race, National Road Championships
1st Overall Giant Cup
2nd Individual pursuit, Asian Track Championships
7th Time trial, Asian Road Championships
7th Overall Tour de Taiwan
8th Overall Tour de East Java
9th Individual pursuit, Asian Games
9th Overall Tour de Hokkaido
10th Overall Tour de Singkarak
2011
1st Road race, National Road Championships
1st Overall International Cycling Classic
1st Stages 1, 5 & 13
3rd Taiwan Cup
9th Overall Tour de Singkarak
2012
1st Mountains classification Tour de Filipinas
1st Mountains classification Tour of Fuzhou
1st Stage 3 Giant Cup
2nd Scratch, Asian Track Championships
3rd Overall Tour de Singkarak
7th Overall Tour de Taiwan
1st Mountains classification
10th Road race, Asian Road Championships
2013
1st Road race, East Asian Games
National Road Championships
1st Road race
1st Time trial
1st Mountains classification Tour de Taiwan
1st Stage 1 Tour of East Taiwan
7th Time trial, Asian Road Championships
2014
National Road Championships
1st Road race
1st Time trial
1st Mountains classification Tour de Taiwan
6th Overall Tour of Thailand
1st Stage 3
8th Time trial, Asian Road Championships
8th Overall Tour de East Java
10th Road race, Asian Games
2015
National Road Championships
1st Road race
1st Time trial
9th Time trial, Asian Road Championships
2016
Asian Road Championships
5th Road race
8th Time trial
2018
3rd Tour de Okinawa
5th Time trial, Asian Games
Asian Road Championships
9th Road race
9th Time trial
2019
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
Asian Road Championships
2nd Time trial
3rd Road race
8th Tour de Okinawa
9th Overall Tour de Taiwan
2020
4th Overall Tour de Taiwan
1st Asian rider classification
2021
1st Road race, National Road Championships
2022
6th Overall Tour de Taiwan
1st Asian rider classification

References

  1. ^ "Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team". Merida Bikes. Merida Industry Co., Ltd. Archived from the original on 1 January 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  2. ^ Ostanek, Daniel (26 December 2019). "2020 Team Preview: Bahrain McLaren". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  3. ^ "Utsunomiya Blitzen". UCI.org. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Bahrain Victorious". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 1 January 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Cycling wild-card sends Taiwan's Feng to Beijing". Taipei Times. 10 July 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  6. ^ "19-year-old makes Chinese Taipei Olympic team". The China Post. 29 July 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  7. ^ "Men's Points Race". Beijing 2008. NBC Olympics. Archived from the original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
  8. ^ "Llaneras scores points gold". Velo News. 16 August 2008. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  9. ^ "Tour de Taiwan: Stage 3 report and result". Bicycle News Asia. 15 March 2010. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  10. ^ "Thursday State Sports Briefs: Harrell unsure he'll be back with Packers in 2011". Pierce County Herald. 21 July 2011. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  11. ^ Held, Tom (22 July 2011). "International Cycling Classic: Lea wins number three, Feng holds yellow". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
  12. ^ "Punctured tyre costs Mohd Harrif the gold in 10km scratch event". The Borneo Post. 12 February 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  13. ^ "Champion System's Zach Bell Wins Tour de Taiwan Stage 4". Fuji Bikes. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  14. ^ "Feng Wins King of the Mountains Jersey at Taiwan". Cycling Illustrated. 24 March 2013. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  15. ^ "Champion System's Chun Kai Feng Wins 4th Taiwan National Title". Fuji Bikes. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  16. ^ "Taiwan takes two cycling golds at East Asian Games". Radio Taiwan International. 13 October 2013. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  17. ^ Phillips, Tony (14 October 2013). "Taiwanese cyclists strike gold at East Asian Games". Taipei Times. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  18. ^ "Chun Kai Feng first Taiwanese WorldTour rider". sbs.com.au. 6 November 2014. Archived from the original on 19 November 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  19. ^ Long, Po-an; Yeh, Joseph (19 November 2019). "Taiwanese cyclist Feng Chun-kai qualifies for Tokyo Olympics". Taiwan News. Central News Agency. Archived from the original on 20 November 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)