Euan Ramos kicked his way to the top in the bike stage and went on to claim the boys' crown while Zabelle Eugenio took charge in the opening swim leg to complete a wire-to-wire victory in the girls' side of the IRONKIDS Philippines in Subic Bay yesterday.

Ramos battled back from joint fifth in the swim with a big surge in the bike then stayed in control in the closing run to rule the premier 13-15 division in 24:34 with combined clockings of 04:53 (swim), 11:07 (bike) and 06:50 (run) over 250-m swim, 6-km bike and 2-km run distance.

The Baguio-based Ramos toppled pre-race favorite Darell Bada, whose rally in the run (6:39) proved short as he finished in 24:45, including 4:50 and 11:30 in the swim and bike stages, respectively, while Jyrehn Sales placed third in 25:24 from 04:48, 11:31 and 07:02 times in swim, bike and run, respectively.

Tikhon Tsinamdzgrishvili from Taguig came out fastest in the swim (04:34) but slowed down in the next two legs (12:15 and 08:41) and ended up 10th with 27:52 clocking in the event which ushered in the third staging of the Century Tuna IRONMAN Philippines and the Subic 70.3 Triathlon firing off today (Sunday).

Ramos' victory came on the heels of his triumph in Azuela Cove in Davao last March but held over the swim and run races.

Eugenio, from San Isidro, Rizal, bested Erin Burgos in  28:54, clocking 05:01 in the swim and sustaining her charge with 12:20 and 09:01 times in the bike and run legs. Burgos finished in 29:22 with times of 05:17, 12:22 and 09:00, while last year's Vermosa winner Celinda Raagas settled for third in 30:04 (05:32-13:15-08:40).

Johan Marcelo and Fritzie Surima shared the 11-12 crowns disputed over the 200-m, 4-km bike and 1.5-km stretch, while Hans Samputon and Aliya Adre topped the 9-10 category (150-m swim, 4-km bike and 1.5-km run) of the event also held to develop values like discipline, sportsmanship and respect for others and encourage the youngsters to live an active, healthy lifestyle.

Oliver Alingarog and Athena Masadao captured the 6-8 titles contested over the 100-m swim, 2-km bike and 1-km run distance.

Marcelo timed 20:01 with leg clocking of 02:54, 07:35 and 07:25 with Julio Tayag and Remsen Cayowet taking the next two spots in 20:30 and 21:55, respectively, while Surima posted a 20:30 clocking (02:52-08:09-06:54) to thwart Lauren Tan (21:21) and Victoria Banal (22:33).

Samputon timed 23:10 (03:46-09:14-07:47) to edge Phil Cayetano (23:27) and Chris Lacuna (23:39), while Adre clocked 21:59 (03:32-09:04-07:09); and Alingarog clocked 15:34 (02:38-05:06-05:04) and Masadao turned in a 15:40 clocking (01:53-06:06-05:00).

The Olongapo Junior Trackers Multi Sport, on the other hand, turned back 2600 Tri in relay in 17:24 (02:59-06:57-05:08) with the latter submitting a 17:41 and TriClark placing third in 21:56, while Olongapo Torpedoes 2 ruled the 6-10 division in 18:23 (01:55-08:13-05:31) over Olongapo Torpedoes (22:02).