Mario rides off with big prize

THE MAN WITHOUT LUCK is now among the fortunate few.
Mario Forde’s wretched run is over, and so too is a three-year drought in cycling’s National Championship series, as the former standout junior got his senior breakthrough by leading an unchallenged three-man breakaway before capturing yesterday’s 21-lap road race title on the Top Rock circuit.
A three-time national junior champ, the 22-year-old St Philip talent finally rode off with “the big one” after spending four relatively unsuccessful seasons in the sport’s top-flight division.
And no year had been more dismal than this one. Forde had previously been winless and untimely mechanical failures robbed cycling’s unlucky man of at least three clear-cut victories.