KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 — The oldest cycling race in Asia, Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL), has sparked a cycling culture in Malaysia.

The race has not only succeeded in producing professional and international cycling athletes but has also successfully turned cycling into a culture.

This was acknowledged by Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman through the organisation of the Junior Cycling Malaysia (JCM) programme and the construction of another velodrome in Terengganu.

“LTdL has become a catalyst for cycling culture in Malaysia not only for high performance athletes but also for the overall cycling culture. We also have JCM to educate our children who will eventually have the opportunity to represent Malaysia in the future.

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“We will start building a velodrome in Dungun early next year to ensure that cycling as a sport can be further boosted so that more Malaysians can participate in it,” he said this to reporters when met after the official launch of the Petronas LTdL 2020 yesterday.

He said with the return of LTdL to Sabah and Sarawak next year, after the last one held in 1997, would not only provide the sports enthusiasts a chance to enjoy the event but at the same time helped to promote the Malaysia Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign.

LTdL, which is also Asia’s biggest cycling race, has been upgraded to the Professional Series (ProSeries) and is scheduled to take place from Feb 7 to 14, covering a total distance of 1,095.7km across nine states including Sarawak, Terengganu, Pahang, Federal Territories (Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur), Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah.

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There will be two additional races, namely, the Criterium International and Malaysia Classic, which will make their debut next year.

The Criterium International would be targeted at the Under-23 (U23) category of riders with a UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) elite-racing license, while the Malaysia Classic, dubbed as the “Race of the Champions” would feature national champions from all over the world. — Bernama