Ep. 17: Onoda falls to last place as Teshima yields and the group sprints ahead

17

Following Onoda’s breakthrough, Teshima loses his fighting spirit and allows Aoyagi to capture him without resistance. Imaizumi and Naruko also pass Teshima during this sequence. Aoyagi takes the lead, enabling Teshima and Aoyagi to utilize tag biking to rejoin the leading trio. All five cyclists then engage in an intense full-out sprint. Despite the effort, Onoda’s inexperience causes him to drop back into last place. He must now exert his final reserves of energy to catch up with the others. This critical moment sets the stage for Onoda to reveal his second strength in cycling to the entire Sohoku team.