This year's second grand award cycling competition, 'KCYCLE Star Match,' will be held for three days at Gwangmyeong Speedom from the 23rd to the 25th. This event serves as a preliminary round for the grand championship of cycling in late June, determining the strongest competitors from various grades, including elite, excellent, and special grades, leading to fierce competition and thrilling matches.

▲Special grade: Im Chae-bin and Jeong Jong-jin collide again for the strongest place.

The special grade features Im Chae-bin (25th class, SS, Susung), last year's grand prix champion, who continues to dominate major competitions this year, including the Speed-On Cup and Busan Special Cycling. Im Chae-bin is regarded as the strongest contender for the championship in this event. With tireless stamina demonstrated in the previous competition, where he secured consecutive wins, Im Chae-bin shows no signs of slowing down. He aims to solidify his position as the ultimate cycling champion through this victory.

On the 3rd, Jeong Jong-jin (20th class, SS, Gimpo), who achieved the fastest 500 wins in cycling history, is also not to be underestimated. Although he lost both of his matches against Im Chae-bin this year, he is the player who has recorded the most victories against Im Chae-bin. While Im Chae-bin has the upper hand in stamina, Jeong Jong-jin excels in race management, and with significant support from fellow Gimpo team special grade players, including In Chi-hwan (17th class, SS, Gimpo), Jeong Jong-jin is presenting a strong challenge to Im Chae-bin.

Meanwhile, other super special competitors, Yang Seung-won (22nd class, SS, Cheongju) and Jeon Won-kyu (23rd class, SS, Dongsuh), are also expected to participate. Recently, Yang Seung-won recorded a disqualification in the 16th match and finished second in the 18th match. Although both players faced setbacks in the 16th match, they are preparing for this competition by steadily improving their physical condition, hoping for a successful comeback through strong finishes.

▲Excellent grade: Park Geon-su and Kwak Hyun-myeong's special promotion makes Kim Min-ho a strong candidate for victory!

The excellent grade, known for its fiercely competitive races, is expected to witness intense battles from the preliminary rounds.

Initially, Park Geon-su (29th class, A1, Gimpo), the top graduate of his class, was regarded as the strongest contender for victory, but he successfully advanced to the special grade last week. Additionally, Kwak Hyun-myeong (17th class, S3, Dongsuh), who was also considered a contender, has achieved special promotion.

As a strong contender, Kim Min-ho (25th class, A1, Gimpo), is on the same team as Park Geon-su. Kim Min-ho secured second place when Park Geon-su won the Busan Special Cycling and has been consistently successful in recent competitions. It is also anticipated that Won Joon-oh (28th class, A1, Dongsuh) and Kim Jun-cheol (28th class, A1, Cheongju), both with experience in the grand award cycling this year, will participate. Both players, who have been demoted from the special grade last year and are competing in the excellent grade this half of the year, are showcasing higher skills expected to shine in this event.

▲Selection grade: Will the 29th class sweep again?

In March, all seven players who advanced to the finals of the Speed-On Cup's selection grade were new members of the 29th class. Among them, Jeong Yun-hyuk (29th class, A2, Dongsuh) won and also achieved special promotion. Following Jeong Yun-hyuk, Bae Gyu-tae (29th class, A2, Susung) and Oh Eun-seob (29th class, A1, Seoul Individual) also quickly achieved special promotion. Currently, a total of 12 players from the 29th class remain in the selection grade, indicating that many more from the 29th class are expected to advance to the finals again.

The standout player among the 29th class is Kim Jeong-woo (29th class, B1, Dongsuh), a formidable contender in the selection grade race. Although he finished 5th in the last grand award final, he has successfully placed in all other races he entered, demonstrating peak physical condition by winning first place in his last six races.

Potential challengers to Kim Jeong-woo include Oh Tae-hee (29th class, B1, Dongsuh), Joo Jeong-won (29th class, B1, Shinsa), and Kim Gi-hoon (29th class, B1, Hannam), along with senior riders such as Im Dae-seung (18th class, B1, Jeonju) and Eom Ji-yong (20th class, B1, Miwon). As the performance gap among the competing riders is minimal, the selection grade is expected to have closely contested matches, much like in the special and excellent grades.

Park Jeong-woo, director general of the expected cycling winners, noted, "In this KCYCLE Star Match grand award cycling competition, special grade Im Chae-bin, excellent grade Kim Min-ho, selection grade Kim Jeong-woo, and Im Dae-seung can be named the strongest contenders for victory. However, the challengers are not significantly inferior in skills compared to these players, so fierce competition is expected from the preliminary round on Friday to the final on Sunday."

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