120 Cyclists To Compete For Yellow Jersey
05/02/2009, Bernama

SHAH ALAM, Feb 5 (Bernama) - The yellow jersey which symbolises the overall winner of a long-distance cycling event is coveted by 120 local and foreign cyclists participating in Asia's prestigious cycling event, the 14th Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) 2009 next week.

The 1,036.3km race will begin with the first round from Putrajaya to Senawang on Monday and ends at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur on Feb 15.

LTdL 2009 chief operating officer Datuk Naim Mohamad said the race this year would be tougher with the participation of four Pro Tour cyclists and five Pro Continental teams.

"The 120 cyclists from 35 countries in five continents will race for the yellow jersey as the overall champion of the "Hors Classe" LTdL 2009," he told reporters after receiving sponsorship for the yellow jersey from Proton Holdings Berhad (Proton), here, on Thursday.

Also present were Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh and its managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir.

Proton, a main sponsor of the event since 1996, is also sponsoring 150 vehicles to be used during the seven-day race.

The yellow jersey was won last year by Republic of Moldova's Ruslan Ivanov from the Serramenti Diquigiovanni-Androni Gioccatoli Team.

Naim, who is also the Malaysian National Cycling Federation deputy president, said Ivanov would not defend his title this year as he had switched to mountain biking.

However, another Moldovan, Alexandre Pliushin, 21, from the Ag2r-La Mondiale Team, was said to have the potential of winning the yellow jersey.

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