Cyclist Perk Seon Ho of the Seoul team won the fifth stage of the HCMC Television Cycling Cup 2009 Sunday.

The Saigon 1 squad hoped to close in on Seoul in the team category, so Dang Ngoc Tu and Vo Thanh Phong of Saigon 1, together with Vo Van Tuan of Binh Duong and Tran Le Quang Tin of Ben Tre, sped up early in the stage and at one time were three minutes ahead of the second group.

However, they got tired as the race went on, and the Seoul team cyclists were able to catch up and overtake them in the final kilometers.

Seoul team’s You Ki Hong continues to don the yellow jersey with a total time of 12 hours, 25 minutes and one second.

Seoul continues to lead the team category with a total time of 36 hours, two minutes and 20 seconds, almost one minute less than the Saigon 1 team in second place.

Stage six of the nine-stage, 1000 kilometer race, which ends in HCMC on April 30, will run today from Phan Rang Town to Da Lat Town in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong.

Reported by Quang Huy