Time to pedal forward with Le Tour de Langkawi
The costs, the logistical complexity, and the perceived lack of returns made it seem like a relic of a bygone era. But today, I stand corrected.
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The Star
3 days ago
- The Star
LTdL 2025 promises to be one of the most competitive in recent years
Deputy director-general of the National Sports Council of Malaysia (NSC), Ariffin Mohd Ghani (3rd left) and Antah Group Board Director, Tunku Khairul Zaim Tunku Naquiyuddin (3rd from right) posing a group photo after press conference on the Le Tour de Langkawi 2025 at Majlis Sukan Negara, Kuala Lumpur. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star KUALA LUMPUR: Get set for fast and furious action in the 29th edition of the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) from Sept 28 to Oct 5. This year's edition will be one of the most competitive in recent years with the confirmation of three WorldTeams (WT) and eight ProTeams (PT). National Sports Council (NSC) deputy director general Arrifin Ghani said that although there will be no summit finishes he is confident the competition will stay fierce, with every team vying for stage wins. "With a total of nine teams who have raced in the Grand Tours, we can expect strong and exciting competition each day - from Stage 1 in Langkawi to the final Stage 8 at the Petronas Twin Towers (KLCC)," said Arrifin during the team announcement press conference. "Although there will be no Hors Categorie climb to Genting Highlands for the second year running, Stage 3 (Gerik-Pasir Puteh) and Stage 5 (Temerloh-Fraser's Hill) will be the key battlegrounds in the fight for the overall individual classification and King of the Mountains jersey. "In fact, the battle is expected to continue until the final days, especially with Stage 7 featuring the longest distance of 214.6km from Melaka to Medini followed by the final stage covering 180km from Tangkak to KLCC." The three confirmed WorldTeams are XDS Astana Team (Kazakhstan), Team Picnic PostNL (Holland), previously known as DSM-Firmenich PostNL, and Cofidis (France). A total of 22 teams will compete in the eight-day race, including 10 continental teams and the Malaysian national team. According to Arrifin, six of the eight ProTeams also race in the three Grand Tours – Total Energies, Tudor Pro Cycling Team, and Uno-X Mobility (Tour de France); VF Group–Bardiani CSF-Faizane and Team Polti VisitMalta (Giro d'Italia); and Burgos-BH (Vuelta a Espana). The two other ProTeams are newcomers Unibet Tietama Rockets (France) and Team Solution Tech-Vini Fantini (Italy). Adding to the excitement will be 10 continental teams, including local outfits Terengganu Cycling Team (TSG) and Malaysia Pro Cycling (MPC) alongside the Malaysian national team. Arrifin is optimistic that every team will field their best riders and that the 2025 LTdL will remain a major attraction for cycling enthusiasts. 'Although teams have yet to submit their full six-man rider lists, we believe LTdL 2025 will still capture the attention of many cycling enthusiasts due to its high level of competition across Asia. "In fact, the organisers themselves are eagerly awaiting the finalised team rosters. From those names, we can gauge each team's strategy and objectives - whether they're targeting stage wins, overall individual standings, team classifications, King of the Mountains or the sprint jersey," he added. Also returning to heat up the competition in this Asian ProSeries race are seven familiar continental teams - Nusantara-BYC (Indonesia), HKSI Pro Cycling Team (Hong Kong), Aisan Racing Team (Japan), KSPO Professional (South Korea), and St George Continental Cycling Team (Australia), along with 7Eleven Cliqq Roadbike (the Philippines), Thailand Continental Cycling Team (Thailand), and new entrants Chengdu DYC Cycling Team (China).
The Star
12-07-2025
- The Star
Time to pedal forward with Le Tour de Langkawi
JUST a year ago, I argued in this very column that Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) had run its course. The costs, the logistical complexity, and the perceived lack of returns made it seem like a relic of a bygone era. But today, I stand corrected. Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Full access to Web and App. RM 13.90/month RM 9.73 /month Billed as RM 9.73 for the 1st month, RM 13.90 thereafter. RM 12.39/month RM 8.63 /month Billed as RM 103.60 for the 1st year, RM 148 thereafter.
New Straits Times
24-06-2025
- New Straits Times
Dormant Jelajah Malaysia faces bleak future
KUALA LUMPUR: The future of Jelajah Malaysia — the country's oldest cycling stage race — as a UCI event remains very much in doubt. That is the view of Malaysia National Cycling Federation (MNCF) secretary Arif Astaman who admitted that it would be very difficult for any organiser to take on the event and expect to turn a profit. The tour — first held in 1963 — was last run in 2017 as a UCI 2.2 level event. An organiser did attempt to revive the race in 2023, however, cancelled the event after postponing it multiple times due to a lack of funding. "I think it is going to be very tough to make Jelajah Malaysia profitable as a UCI2.2 race," said Arif when met recently. "With Jelajah, you don't have the same calibre of riders and teams as Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) so you can't really offer sponsors the same kind of value. "But the costs to organise the race are not that much different as you still have to meet UCI standards. "This means you still have to permanently shut down roads during the event, provide hotel rooms, transportation, fuel, prize money, staging as well as sanctioning fees to the UCI. "It is tough for races like Jelajah to be in the black because we do not have domestic companies (sponsors) who have that kind of money to spend where the link to sales is not immediate. "Personally, I feel that the future of Jelajah as a UCI race remains very much in doubt. I do, however, believe it can be run successfully as a domestic race." Arif said a number of local stage races such as Tour Gateh D'Tranung, Jelajah Negri Sembilan and Tour Geo D'Kedah have proven that it is possible to run stage races sustainably at the domestic level. "Local races run under MNCF rules, which means tour organisers can ask teams to bring their own (team) cars, can place teams in hostels or just give them money to sort out their own accommodation," said Arif. "MNCF also does not set any required standard for prize money. These savings makes the costs of organsing the event much more manageable for the organisers. "The Tour Gateh D'Tranung for example, has done really well over the past few years and is now a seven or eight stage race. "I believe very much in development and we need races in which our young riders can learn to ride in a peloton. You can't replicate that in training. "If you combine the stages from the three local tours we probably have about 14 to 15 days of racing a year for our local riders. "It would be great if we could increase that to somewhere between 20 to 30 days a year. That would be fantastic. "The challenge for organisers who want to run Jelajah as a domestic event is again to find a suitable sponsor. With its name being Jelajah Malaysia, you cannot just hold it in one state."
