LANGKAWI: Pre-race favourite Gleb Syritsa (Astana Qazaqstan) proved he is in fine form after powering to an emphatic victory in the opening stage of Petronas Le Tour de Langkawi here today (Sept 29).
The Russian outkicked his rivals in the bunch sprint finish to secure the win in two hours, four minutes and 37 seconds, pipping DSM-Firmenich PostNL’s Casper van Uden to the line. VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizane’s Lorenzo Conforti completed the podium.
Malaysia Pro Cycling (MPC) sprinter Izzat Hilmi Abdul Halil was the highest placed Asian rider, coming in seventh in the same group. Terengganu Cycling Team’s (TSG) Harrif Saleh settled for 34th (same time) on the day.
It was Syritsa’s first stage win of the season and he was all smiles after the race. The win earned him 12 bonus seconds which means he will wear the green jersey (general classification) in tomorrow’s second stage.
He also leads the points classification (orange jersey) with 17 points to his name.
“Of course I feel really happy to win here in Malaysia again and I believe I can win more stages after this,” said Syritsa.
“The legs felt good today and the team also did a great job supporting me.
“We followed our tactics and waited for the right moment to go full gas. It was a very fast sprint, probably over 60 kilometres per hour.
“I am happy to be in Malaysia again, it is a very nice country, the people here always look happy.”
It was Syritsa’s fourth win on Malaysian soil after previously winning LTdL stages in 2022 and 2023.
The 96.5 kilometre stage, which started and ended in Kuah Town here, opened at a frenetic pace and it did not take long before a breakaway group was established.
The group included TSG’s Nur Aiman Rosli and Afiq Huznie Othman (Malaysia national team) but the latter suffered a flat and found himself back in the peloton before the first intermediate sprint.
Aiman placed second at the first intermediate sprint at Harbour Park behind Euskaltel-Euskadi’s Xavier Canellas and was again second behind Canellas during the second sprint at Kampung Bayas.
Aiman was also second to crest the Langkawi Lookout Point (category four), which was the only categorised climb of the day, this time behind Ara Skip Capital’s Tyler Tomkinson.
Aiman’s efforts earned him four bonus seconds and put him in the white jersey (Asian riders classification) while Tomkinson took charge of the polka dot jersey (climbers classification).
Tomorrow’s (Sept 30) second stage, which starts in Arau and ends in Butterworth, will cover 154.5km. The flat stage profile, which features intermediate sprints at Jitra, Menara Alor Setar and Sungai Petani, means it will be one for the sprinters.
The general classification men will look to conserve their energy for the third stage climb up to Cameron Highlands on Tuesday (Oct 1).
– NST
