“Thurakit” clinched the 10th gold medal to close the event beautifully as Thailand soared as the cycling gold medal leader at the SEA Games.
Thurakit Boonrattanathanakorn did not disappoint fans, winning the men's points race gold medal—the 10th gold for the Thai cycling team at the 33rd SEA Games. Meanwhile, the men's sprint team took silver. "Sergeant Major Muek" expressed pride as the Thai cycling team secured the top gold medal position with 10 golds, 7 silvers, and 3 bronzes.
The 33rd SEA Games track cycling competition was held at the Velodrome inside the Sports Authority of Thailand, Huamark, on 19 December, the final day, featuring two gold medal events: men's points race and men's sprint team. The ceremony was honored by Dato' Amajit Singh Gill, President of the Asian Cycling Confederation (ACC), along with "Sergeant Major Muek" General Decha Hemkrasri, ACC Vice President, President of the ASEAN Cycling Federation (ACF), and President of the Cycling Association of Thailand under Royal Patronage, accompanied by the association's executive committee.
In the men's points race, covering 72 laps over 24 km, Thailand fielded two riders: seasoned cyclist Lieutenant Police Officer Thurakit Boonrattanathanakorn and Judah Isaiah Thompson. Thurakit lived up to his reputation with an outstanding performance, earning gold with 38 points—Thailand's 10th gold medal. Silver went to New Joe Liu of Malaysia with 28 points, and bronze to Bernard Benjamin van Eert of Indonesia with 11 points.
In the men's sprint final, Thailand's team of three—Police Senior Sergeant Major Yuenyong Petchrat, "TJ" Jai Angsuthasawit, and Corporal Naretthada Bunma—competed against Malaysia. The Thai team clocked 1:00.720, just behind Malaysia's 1:00.500, who narrowly took gold. Thailand earned silver. Overall, in the four cycling disciplines, Thailand led with 10 golds, 7 silvers, and 3 bronzes.
After the competition, General Decha said that Thurakit’s gold was the final medal for Thailand, bringing the total to 10 golds. The process took time due to Malaysia's protest over lap counting, but international referees confirmed the results were correct, awarding gold to Thurakit. Thailand ranked first in cycling gold medals. Although the sprint team lost by a fraction of a second to Malaysia, they gave their best. The team will now focus on preparing for the 20th Asian Games next year in Japan. All cyclists, coaches, and staff worked unitedly and expressed gratitude to the public for their support both at the venue and via broadcast. The Cycling Association of Thailand will continue to progress and not stop here.
Naretthada Bunma, representing the track cyclists, thanked General Decha Hemkrasri, President of the Cycling Association, for continuous support throughout nearly a year of training. He ensured excellent care for athletes’ morale, including accommodation, food, and allowances without fail. This support contributed to their good performance today. Naretthada also thanked the public for their encouragement and vowed that at next year’s SEA Games in Malaysia, the team will be even stronger.
Summary of the 10 gold medals Thailand won in the 33rd SEA Games cycling events covering four categories—mountain biking, BMX, road, and track—are: 1. Specialist Metasit Boonsane, men's downhill; 2. Corporal Vipavee Dechabales, women's downhill; 3. Sergeant Gometh Sukprasert, BMX time trial; 4. Sergeant Gometh Sukprasert, BMX racing; 5. Lieutenant Junior Grade Juthathip Maneepan, women's criterium; 6. Pilot Officer Peeraphon Chaowchiangkwang, men's individual time trial; 7. Sergeant Sarawut Sirironchai, men's road race; 8. Men's road race team; 9. Lieutenant Junior Grade Juthathip Maneepan, women's road race; 10. Lieutenant Police Officer Thurakit Boonrattanathanakorn, men's points race.
The 7 silver medals include: 1. Mr. Phutthaphum Nakpan, BMX time trial; 2. Mr. Phutthaphum Nakpan, BMX racing; 3. Men's time trial team; 4. Sergeant Major Phetcharin Somrach, women's individual time trial; 5. Mr. Jai Angsuthasawit, men's keirin; 6. Men's pursuit team; 7. Men's sprint team. The 3 bronze medals were won by: 1. Ms. Kanokrat Ritdech, women's downhill; 2. Sergeant Major Chaniporn Batriya, women's individual time trial; 3. Corporal Naretthada Bunma, men's keirin.