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Asian Games: Danny Caluag now juggles time as dad, nurse and BMX champ

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ABS-CBN News

Four years after winning the Asian Games gold, US-based Filipino Danny Caluag still feels good about his chances defending his title.The 31-year-old BMX rider is determined to relive his memorable success during the first half of the decade where he won three major tournaments.Apart from being an Olympian during the 2012 London Games, the California-based Caluag won gold medals at the 2013 Asian BMX Cycling championships in Singapore and the 2013 Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar.Caluag finally made his mark by being the lone gold medal winner at the 2014 Asian Games, a feat that also won him the Athlete of the Year award by the Philippine Sportswriters’ Association.Success became few and far between for Caluag since his 2014 Asian Games triumph as he had to focus on his nursing career apart from being a father to two kids.“After 2014 I started my new career as a registered nurse. Then I started training for the 2016 Olympics and I felt great. Probably the best I felt in a while but it just didn’t pan out at the world championships,” said Caluag.Caluag said he is still determined to serve the country by trying to defend his Asian Games crown despite the need to spend much time for his growing family.“I actually feel better than going into the 2014 Games because back then it was definitely a juggle with where I live and try to have the best preparation but I still ended up winning the gold,” said Caluag. “Now, I feel I have lot more support with family and with the means to take care of whatever is necessary. I really don’t have to worry too much about how am I going to make this work.”While tending to his nursing career and obligation as a provider for his young family, Caluag never turned his back on cycling notwithstanding the lack of international exposure that he supposedly needs to improve his chances in the Asiad currently being held in Jakarta, Indonesia.“Racing is there and I’d definitely do it for the country though I haven’t been doing it much on the international level so I’ve been using some of the local events to prepare for this event,” said Caluag “I’m still training. This has always been a big thing for me as I definitely want to win it again. With this birth of my daughter along with winning it for the Phlippines, it’s definitely an honor.” The BMX competitions of the 2018 Asian Games will be held August 25 at the Pulomas International BMX Center in Jakarta.<div>For more sports coverage, visit the <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com">ABS-CBN Sports website</a>.</div>

Four years after winning the Asian Games gold, US-based Filipino BMX rider Danny Caluag still feels good about his chances defending his title.

Four years after winning the Asian Games gold, US-based Filipino BMX rider Danny Caluag still feels good about his chances defending his title.