Tour de Langkawi 2010 route announced

Image 1 of 9

The route for the 15th edition of Asia's premier cycling event, the 2010 Le Tour de Langkawi, has been announced today in Malaysia. The International Cycling Union (UCI) Cat. 2.HC event is scheduled to take place from March 1-7, 2010 and will involve seven stages, for a total distance of 1,001.8 kilometres.

The route will feature 13 stage towns, including a venue new to the Tour de Langkawi at Parit Sulong in the state of Johor.

The seven stages will be:

Stage 1 - Kota Bharu - Kuala Berang (174.5km)
Stage 2 - Kuala Terengganu - Chukai (182.9km)
Stage 3 - Pekan, Pahang - Mersing, Johor (144km)
Stage 4 - Mersing, Johor - Parit Sulong, Johor (163.5km)
Stage 5 - Muar, Johor - Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan (140.3km)
Stage 6 - Putrajaya, WP - Genting Highlands (103.9km)
Stage 7 - Kuala Kubu Baru - Dataran Merdeka (loop x6) (92.8km)

The route will be challenging because riders will have to pedal against the winds of the South China Sea, especially in stage two and stage three, while stage four will test their endurance.

After a year's absence, the race will once again head to the 'Hors Catégorie' Genting Highlands on stage six. The steep climb will be expected to determine the overall winner.

A total of 20 six-man teams will compete, including three ProTour teams, five pro continental teams, five continental teams, four foreign national teams and three local teams.

Now being organised by the country's Ministry of Youth and Sport together with the Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF), Le Tour de Langkawi has become one of the most prestigious cycling races in Asia. "Every year, the Tour grows in recognition," said Deputy Youth and Sports Minister, Y.B. Dato' Razali Haji Ibrahim at the launch of the event. "We can be proud of this achievement, raising the standard of event organisation to a professional world-class level and further enhance the development of sports in our country."

Follow Cyclingnews on Twitter for the very latest coverage of events taking place in the cycling world - twitter.com/cyclingnewsfeed.