Paredes leads Team Medellin to victory at JICC

Despite finishing 15th overall on stage three, Wilmar Peredes from Team Medellin was crowned the overall general classification winner of the Jamaica International Cycling Classic following third-day action in Montego Bay, yesterday.

Paredes secured the title after winning Friday’s opening Rose Hall Loop and then bagging eighth spot in Saturday’s Discovery Bay and back run to finish with an overall time of six hours 52:40 to beat out teammate Walter Vargas who totalled six hours 54:39.

American Gabriel Mendez from team WBHB secured the overall third-place spot after clocking six hours 54:39.

Oshane Williams from Cornwall Cycling Club was the best-placed Jamaican after his six hours 56:11 was good enough for 10th place overall.

In the meantime, the Colombians dominated all three days of the event, Christian Tamayo winning the 70-mile Discovery Bay and back leg as well as Sunday’s Duncans 54-mile Loop and back stage.

After claiming two of the three stages, Paredes also made it a clean sweep in the King of the Mountain race.

Following their domination, team Medellin easily took the team title which was pleasing to head coach Julian Velasquez.

“We are very happy to come to Jamaica and win the event. This is our first time to Jamaica and it was a total team effort that allowed us to claim the title which we hope to defend next year because we will be back,” Velasquez said.

Event organiser Carlton Simmonds of the Simmonds High-Velocity Cycling Club said the overall event was a success with some of the top riders from across Central America, the United States and the Caribbean taking part.

“I am happy that we could have executed this event which saw top clubs out of Colombia coming and showing their true class. It was a good three days of cycling and what we hope to achieve next year is to see more international teams taking part,” Simmons said.