The 27th edition of the PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi 2023 ended with a bang with Gleb Syritsa of Astana Qazaqstan Cycling taking the final stage and Simon Carr of EF Education-EasyPost confirming his status as the best overall rider, here today.
It was Syritsa’s second stage victory in this year’s edition as a full pro, and his third career win in Le Tour de Langkawi, after taking last year’s Kuala Lumpur stage in Astana colours at the same spot. Today’s 156.5km-Stage 8 started from Setia Alam and ended at KLCC.
It was a tight finish to the line with the Russian winning over Caja Rural’s Daniel Babor in a tiny fraction of the wheel, in front of the iconic Petronas Twin Tower Kuala Lumpur. Babor had also a stage win in the bag after winning Stage 4 in Meru Raya.
Two-stage winner, Arvid de Kleijn, who was unwell with a blocked nose over the past few days, did well to come in third to end his campaign with creditable results for Tudor Pro Cycling Team.
It was a day to remember for 25-year-old Carr, who made history by becoming the first British rider to be crowned as overall winner in the Tour’s 27-year history.
Carr, who held on to the PETRONAS Green Overall Winner Jersey since the Genting Highlands’ Stage 5 which he won by 49 seconds over teammate Alexander Jefferson Cepeda, was well protected by his team throughout what he described was a hard race.
Syritsa, who was part of a 14-men breakaway group earlier in the race was simply overjoyed over his achievement in Tour de Langkawi: “It’s been a good Tour de Langkawi for me, a win last year and twice this year…I’m super happy.
It was a hard day on the saddle today, and I was in the early breakaway group…my team did well to help me right up to the finish,” said Syritsa.
Babor, meanwhile had no complaints despite finishing a close second behind Syritsa. “I’m just happy to finish the race in second place…today’s stage was hard and super crazy, with lots of crashes. All in all, it’s been a good race for me, I’m just super happy with my outing here in Malaysia.”
Carr, elated over his first overall victory as a pro rider, heaped praises on his teammates, whom he said rode hard from the start to the end of the race. EF Education-Easy Post came to the race with clear intentions of winning the general classification by bringing a team full of reputable climbers.
“I’m really happy with the win, more so, as the first British rider to win the overall title. It’s a special feeling….it was a very hard stage today, but our guys did well, especially in bringing back the breakaway group.
I’m hoping that this win will be a beginning for better things to come for me, a stepping stone for a bigger pro career. I’m progressing little by little with every race, it’s been a good race for me here, no doubt” said Carr.
Tudor’s Simon Pellaud confirmed his status as the 2023 King of Mountains, taking the TOURISM MALAYSIA Red Polka Dot Jersey with an overall 32 points, 12 points ahead of overall winner Simon Carr.
“I’m super happy with this win, it’s been a tough week, tough race, but in the end, great race, and great results, and great memories to bring home from Malaysia,” said Pellaud, who also took the BUBBLES02 Most Combative Award for his breakaway efforts in the fast-pace race.
Two-stage winner Arvid de Kleijn, among the most successful Dutch riders in the Tour, led the sprints classification from start to finish to finally claim the KBS ORANGE Sprinters Jersey, amassing an overall 72 points, ahead of Syritsa (58) and Sasha Weemaes (Human Powered Health) 55 points.
“Overall, we did well here in Malaysia, with many podiums, and brought back home two jerseys…so it’s great, we’re happy with the outcome,” said de Kleijn.
Astana’s Vadim Pronskiy ended his campaign with the BEAUTIFUL TERENGGANU White Jersey intact on his back, as the 2023 Best Asian rider, clocking a total time of 29:18.56s. Mongolian Jambaljamts Sainbayar (Terengganu Polygon Cycling Team) came in second overall, with a 2:04s deficit.
Meanwhile, three Malaysians who were in the top 10 bracket of the Asian classification include Muhammad Nur Aiman Aiman Rosli (Malaysian National Team) at the 5th spot, followed by Muhammad Nur Aiman Zariff (8th, TSG) and Muhammad Shaiful Adlan (9th, Malaysian National Team).
The 27th edition of the Tour, which started in Kerteh Terengganu on September 23, ended here today with 109 finishers.
Present at the prize-giving ceremony were Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, Deputy Minister Adam Adli Abd Halim and PETRONAS Senior General Manager, Group Strategic Communications, Datin Anita Azrina Abd Aziz.
OVERALL RESULTS:
PETRONAS Green Jersey (Overall Winner):
Simon Carr (GBR) EF Education-EasyPost
TOURISM MALAYSIA Red Polka Dot Jersey (Mountains)
Simon Pellaud (SUI) Tudor Pro Cycling
KBS Orange Jersey (King of Sprints):
Arvid de Kleijn (NED) Tudor Pro Cycling
BEAUTIFUL TERENGGANU White Jersey (Best Asian)
Vadim Pronskiy (KAZ) Astana Qazaqstan Team
BEST OVERALL TEAM:
EF Education-EasyPost (USA)
BEST ASIAN TEAM:
Roojai Online Insurance (Thailand)
PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi 2023 Challenge Trophy:
Simon Carr (GBR) EF Education-EasyPost
