SINGAPORE – Foo Yi Cheng still remembers feeling directionless as a teenager. He was retained twice in secondary school and quit his polytechnic studies after less than a year.

Cycling helped him to find his focus and the 23-year-old, who is now a nursing student at Nanyang Polytechnic, has come a long way from his days as a lost teen.

He is the vice-captain of local cycling outfit Team Garcia, where he trains and mentors younger riders, and on Saturday was part of the team who finished third in the OCBC Cycle Speedway Championships’ club category.

They clocked a mean timing of 17min 56.703sec in the final to finish behind defending champions Allied World Quantum Racing A (17:56.167) and Specialized Dynasty Mavericks A (17:56.543).

This was an improvement from their performance at the 2022 championships, where they were knocked out in the semi-finals.

The race features teams of four riders, split into two pairs, riding a total of 10 laps around the 1km circuit at Stadium Drive.

On why guiding younger riders is important to him, Foo said: “My parents were very supportive but... I didn’t know what to do.

“It was around that time that I started cycling and, a year later, I met uncle Melvin and, from there on, I felt like I knew this team but I wasn’t part of them yet.

“I wasn’t a troubled youth but I had to go a bigger round – it took me time to find out what I wanted to do.”

Team Garcia was founded by Melvin Lee, owner of RNE Bike Shop, in 2019. The 55-year-old, who was a former gang member and was once almost expelled from school, set up the team to provide guidance to youth.

Lee’s vision resonated strongly with Foo. While it was sometimes tough to juggle his studies, a part-time job at a cafe and his responsibilities with Team Garcia, Foo said it was worth it.

He said: “I felt that when I was training the boys, it was good to train them a certain way.

“But I believe in the story that we should nurture youths in the right way and set a good example for these boys, so that the youth can not only enjoy cycling but have a good career path.”

Improving their performance from 2022 was a result of many hours of training, including an eight-day training camp in Perth that was partly subsidised by Lee and sponsors.

Foo said: “Last year we went in without any expectations but went out in the semi-finals. But this year we managed to get a podium spot, which is pretty amazing considering where we came from and we worked hard to get here.”

While Allied World Quantum Racing A retained just one member from their championship-winning squad, it did not stop them from emerging victorious again on Saturday.

Matthieu Bedard, 42, said: “It was very important to maintain intensity throughout all 15 laps of the race, including into and out of the corners. It was even more tiring due to the qualifying heats before the finals.”

Daniel Cooper, 32, stressed that teamwork was crucial, saying: “Winning together makes the difference. It is not about crossing the line first. You have to think about how to use everyone, you have to win as a team.”

OCBC Bank won the Corporate Championship in a mean timing of 19:36.3.

 SCDF finished second in 19:44.7 while Advanced Micro Devices (20:00.4) were third.