Giger and Davison take over leads in Langkawi

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Day 2 of Langkawi International Mountain Bike Challenge (LIMBC) 2012 produced new leaders to wear the yellow jerseys in both the men's and women's categories.

Men

World Cup fifth-place finisher Fabian Giger (Rabobank-Giant) took the yellow jersey as the first rider to cross the finish line of stage 1 at Eagle's Square on Tuesday. The Swiss rider from Team Rabobank-Giant clocked 2:23:08, ahead of Kristian Hynek of Ceska Sporitelna Specialized and defending champion Karl Platt from Team Bulls

Fresh from his recent victory in a cross country World Cup test event in Guiyang, China, Giger rode a brand new Giant XtC Advanced SL 29er bicycle en route to victory on the 65km course around the island.

Billed as one of the favorites, Giger dominated from the start by controlling the pace ahead of the leading pack and finished the race with a 29.6-second advantage. Hynek finished with a rear puncture which he had sustained in the last 3km.

"I am happy it worked pretty well for me after we have to go through the muddy and slippery track. My teammates and I were very much into the lead in the jungle. Now, my mind is set for tomorrow's race," said Giger to the reporters after the awards ceremony.

Asked about his strategy for Wednesday's stage 2, he said, "I will try my best to keep the yellow jersey. Tomorrow, is another day and I predict it will be a close fight."

Women

In the women's race, Lea Davison from Team Specialized clinched the pink jersey after a close battle with three riders in the final section.

She managed to surge ahead of defending champion Nathalie Schneitter of Colnago Sudtirol and third-placed Janka Stevkova, who had to be satisfied with third place following a tyre puncture which occurred during the last mile.

Yesterday's prologue winner Eva Lechner (Colnago Sudtirol) was also left to lament her bad luck when the Italian suffered a leg cramp during the four-rider battle towards the end.

"It was a close fight. We exchanged positions often during the race right from the start," said Davison. "I am so happy to sprint ahead three of my competitors, and it is important for me to win today. I will certainly have to ride much better tomorrow." The winner from the Specialized Racing team crossed the line with 3:07:12.

"It was very, very muddy and technical with only a few breaks from the mud on the road sections," said Davison. "The top competitors are very close so the next couple of days should be very interesting."

Malaysians

Meanwhile, Malaysia's best finishes were Masziyaton Binti Mohd Radzi with 10th in the women's race and Fauzan Ahmad Lutfi, who made a decent outing against world class competitors by finishing 13th in the men's category

Tomorrow's stage 2 will be a 45km race from East to West Langkawi starting from Lagenda Park.

Full Results