# Tour de Langkawi

The Tour de Langkawi is a multiple stage bicycle race held in Malaysia. It is named after the archipelago Langkawi, where the first edition started and finished. The race has been held annually since 1996, primarily in February. It usually consists of 10 day-long segments (stages) over 10 days, but has been reduced to eight stages over recent years. While the route changes each year, the Genting Highlands climb, the toughest in the tour, is always included. Tour de Langkawi is sanctioned by the International Cycling Union (UCI) as a 2.HC road race in the UCI Asia Tour calendar. The race became part of the UCI ProSeries in 2020.
For 2023 edition, the race will be held on 23 September to 30 September 2023. This year the National Sport Council (MSN) will be the organiser of the event. The race involves eight stages of racing over eight days across 11 states in Peninsular Malaysia with a total distance of 1,280 kilometers.
All stages are timed to the finish. Times for each completed stage are compounded; the rider with the lowest aggregate time is the leader of the race and gets to wear the yellow jersey. While the general classification garners the most attention, there are other contests held within the Tour: the points classification for sprinters, the mountains classification for climbers, the Asian rider classification for Asian riders, the team classification for competing teams, and the Asian team classification for competing Asian teams.

## History

The Tour de Langkawi was conceived by former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to put Malaysia "on the world sporting and tourism map". The first race was held from 29 February to 9 March 1996, with the opening and ending taking place in Langkawi. It was Asia's richest bicycle race with total prize money of RM1.1 million. It attracted 21 teams from 19 countries but without the participation of the major cyclists of the world.
In 1997, the teams Mapei–GB and MG Maglificio–Technogym from Italy and the team Casino from France refused to participate in the second stage of the Tour as a protest against long delays in the delivery of their bicycles and luggage caused by insufficient numbers of cargo handlers at provincial airports in the states of Sabah and Sarawak. Organisers officially cancelled the second stage, though an unofficial shortened version was held. Since then, the race has never re-visited Sabah or Sarawak, except for the 2020 edition.
The final stage of the race was cancelled twice due to heavy rain in 2003 and 2006.
During the first stage in 2004, police allowed vehicles onto the course by mistake. Riders mutually decided to neutralise the stage.
In 2008, the Genting Highlands climb stage was replaced by Fraser's Hill. Due to 150,000 visitors converging on the Genting Highlands resort area to celebrate Chinese New Year, officials would not be able to close roads along the race route to insure the safety of riders and the public. The Genting Highlands climb stage returned to the Tour in 2009.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 race that was supposed to happen between January 30 to February 6 was cancelled after initial consideration of postponement to September in the same year. The event made its return in 2022, initially scheduled from March 3 to 10 but was then postponed twice, first to June 11 to 18, then again to October 11 to 18.
The 2023 race was taken off from the UCI calendar after the UCI received complaints from teams of not receiving payments for appearance fees and flight tickets from the 2022 race. Malaysia National Cycling Federation vice president Datuk Amarjit Singh Gill said that the race will go on as scheduled and he will get a clearer picture of the situation during the world body's board meeting. In August 2023, the UCI agreed to reinstate the race in its calendar, with the National Sports Council making key changes on payments to participants from the 2023 race onwards.

## Past winners
### General classification

| Year | Country | Rider | Team |
| 1996 | Australia | Damian McDonald | Giant–AIS |
| 1997 | Italy | Luca Scinto | MG Maglificio–Technogym |
| 1998 | Italy | Gabriele Missaglia | Mapei–Bricobi |
| 1999 | Italy | Paolo Lanfranchi | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2000 | United States | Chris Horner | Mercury Cycling Team |
| 2001 | Italy | Paolo Lanfranchi | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2002 | Colombia | Hernán Darío Muñoz | Colombia–Selle Italia |
| 2003 | United States | Tom Danielson | Saturn Cycling Team |
| 2004 | Colombia | Fredy González | Colombia–Selle Italia |
| 2005 | South Africa | Ryan Cox | Barloworld |
| 2006 | South Africa | David George | South Africa (national team) |
| 2007 | France | Anthony Charteau | Crédit Agricole |
| 2008 | Moldova | Ruslan Ivanov | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2009 | Colombia | José Serpa | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2010 | Venezuela | José Rujano | Androni Giocattoli |
| 2011 | Venezuela | Jonathan Monsalve | Androni Giocattoli |
| 2012 | Colombia | José Serpa | Androni Giocattoli–Venezuela |
| 2013 | Colombia | Julián Arredondo | Team Nippo–De Rosa |
| 2014 | Iran | Samad Pourseyedi | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2015 | Algeria | Youcef Reguigui | MTN–Qhubeka |
| 2016 | South Africa | Reinardt Janse van Rensburg | Team Dimension Data |
| 2017 | South Africa | Ryan Gibbons | Team Dimension Data |
| 2018 | Russia | Artem Ovechkin | Terengganu Cycling Team |
| 2019 | Australia | Benjamin Dyball | Team Sapura Cycling |
| 2020 | Italy | Danilo Celano | Team Sapura Cycling |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | Colombia | Iván Sosa | Movistar Team |
| 2023 | Great Britain | Simon Carr | EF Education–EasyPost |
| 2024 | Great Britain | Max Poole | Team dsm–Firmenich PostNL |

### Points classification

| Year | Country | Rider | Team |
| 1996 | Australia | Damian McDonald | Giant–AIS |
| 1997 | Italy | Luca Scinto | MG Maglificio–Technogym |
| 1998 | United States | Fred Rodriguez | Saturn Cycling Team |
| 1999 | New Zealand | Graeme Miller | New Zealand (national team) |
| 2000 | Canada | Gordon Fraser | Mercury Cycling Team |
| 2001 | Italy | Paolo Bettini | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2002 | South Africa | Robert Hunter | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2003 | Australia | Graeme Brown | Ceramiche Panaria–Fiordo |
| 2004 | Canada | Gordon Fraser | Health Net–Maxxis |
| 2005 | Australia | Graeme Brown | Ceramica Panaria–Navigare |
| 2006 | Germany | Steffen Radochla | Wiesenhof–AKUD |
| 2007 | Italy | Alberto Loddo | Diquigiovanni–Selle Italia |
| 2008 | Switzerland | Aurélien Clerc | Bouygues Télécom |
| 2009 | Italy | Mattia Gavazzi | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2010 | Malaysia | Anuar Manan | Geumsan Ginseng Asia |
| 2011 | Italy | Andrea Guardini | Farnese Vini–Neri Sottoli |
| 2012 | Italy | Andrea Guardini | Farnese Vini–Selle Italia |
| 2013 | Italy | Francesco Chicchi | Vini Fantini–Selle Italia |
| 2014 | Lithuania | Aidis Kruopis | Orica–GreenEDGE |
| 2015 | Australia | Caleb Ewan | Orica–GreenEDGE |
| 2016 | Italy | Andrea Guardini | Astana |
| 2017 | South Africa | Ryan Gibbons | Team Dimension Data |
| 2018 | Italy | Andrea Guardini | Bardiani–CSF |
| 2019 | United States | Travis McCabe | Floyd's Pro Cycling |
| 2020 | Germany | Max Walscheid | NTT Pro Cycling |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | Norway | Erlend Blikra | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team |
| 2023 | Netherlands | Arvid de Kleijn | Tudor Pro Cycling Team |
| 2024 | Italy | Matteo Malucelli | JCL Team Ukyo |

### Mountains classification

| Year | Country | Rider | Team |
| 1996 | Great Britain | Chris Newton | Great Britain (National Team) |
| 1997 | Italy | Luca Scinto | MG Maglificio–Technogym |
| 1998 | South Africa | Douglas Ryder | South Africa (national team) |
| 1999 | Italy | Alessandro Petacchi | Navigare–Gaerne |
| 2000 | Mexico | Julio Alberto Pérez | Ceramica Panaria–Gaerne |
| 2001 | Italy | Paolo Lanfranchi | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2002 | Colombia | Ruber Marín | Colombia–Selle Italia |
| 2003 | Canada | Roland Green | Canada (national team) |
| 2004 | Colombia | Ruber Marín | Colombia–Selle Italia |
| 2005 | South Africa | Ryan Cox | Barloworld |
| 2006 | South Africa | David George | South Africa (national team) |
| 2007 | Colombia | Walter Pedraza | Diquigiovanni–Selle Italia |
| 2008 | Italy | Filippo Savini | CSF Group–Navigare |
| 2009 | Colombia | José Serpa | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2010 | Australia | Peter McDonald | Drapac–Porsche Cycling |
| 2011 | Venezuela | Jonathan Monsalve | Androni Giocattoli |
| 2012 | Colombia | José Serpa | Androni Giocattoli–Venezuela |
| 2013 | China | Wang Meiyin | Hengxiang Cycling Team |
| 2014 | Ireland | Matt Brammeier | Synergy Baku |
| 2015 | United States | Kiel Reijnen | UnitedHealthcare |
| 2016 | China | Wang Meiyin | Wisdom–Hengxiang Cycling Team |
| 2017 | Denmark | John Ebsen | Infinite AIS Cycling Team |
| 2018 | Colombia | Álvaro Duarte | Forca Amskins Racing |
| 2019 | Australia | Angus Lyons | Oliver's Real Food Racing |
| 2020 | Malaysia | Muhamad Nur Aiman Mohd Zariff | Team Sapura Cycling |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | Malaysia | Muhamad Nur Aiman Mohd Zariff | Terengganu Polygon Cycling Team |
| 2023 | Switzerland | Simon Pellaud | Tudor Pro Cycling Team |
| 2024 | Spain | Mario Aparicio | Burgos BH |

### Asian rider classification

| Year | Country | Rider | Team |
| 1998 | Indonesia | Tonton Susanto | Indonesia (national team) |
| 1999 | Japan | Hideto Yukinari | Japan (national team) |
| 2000 | Hong Kong | Wong Kam-po | Telekom Malaysia Cycling Team |
| 2001 | Hong Kong | Wong Kam-po | Telekom Malaysia Cycling Team |
| 2002 | Indonesia | Tonton Susanto | Telekom Malaysia Cycling Team |
| 2003 | Japan | Tomoya Kano | Japan (national team) |
| 2004 | Iran | Ghader Mizbani | Iran (national team) |
| 2005 | Japan | Koji Fukushima | Bridgestone-Anchor |
| 2006 | Iran | Hossein Askari | Giant Asia Racing Team |
| 2007 | Iran | Ghader Mizbani | Giant Asia Racing Team |
| 2008 | Japan | Shinichi Fukushima | Meitan Hompo-GDR |
| 2009 | Indonesia | Tonton Susanto | LeTua Cycling Team |
| 2010 | South Korea | Gong Hyo-Suk | Seoul Cycling Team |
| 2011 | Iran | Rahim Emami | Azad University Iran |
| 2012 | Kazakhstan | Alexsandr Dyachenko | Astana |
| 2013 | China | Wang Meiyin | Hengxiang Cycling Team |
| 2014 | Iran | Samad Pourseyedi | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2015 | Japan | Tomohiro Hayakawa | Aisan Racing Team |
| 2016 | Malaysia | Adiq Husainie Othman | Terengganu Cycling Team |
| 2017 | Japan | Hideto Nakane | Nippo–Vini Fantini |
| 2018 | Kazakhstan | Yevgeniy Gidich | Astana |
| 2019 | Kazakhstan | Vadim Pronskiy | Astana City |
| 2020 | Kazakhstan | Yevgeniy Fedorov | Vino–Astana Motors |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | Mongolia | Sainbayaryn Jambaljamts | Terengganu Polygon Cycling Team |
| 2023 | Kazakhstan | Vadim Pronskiy | Astana Qazaqstan Team |
| 2024 | Japan | Manabu Ishibashi | JCL Team Ukyo |

### Team classification

| Year | Based | Team name |
| 1996 | | Giant–AIS |
| 1997 | | MG Maglificio–Technogym |
| 1998 | | Mapei–Bricobi |
| 1999 | | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2000 | | Mercury Cycling Team |
| 2001 | | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2002 | | Mapei–Quick-Step |
| 2003 | | Colombia–Selle Italia |
| 2004 | | Barloworld |
| 2005 | | Barloworld |
| 2006 | | Selle Italia–Diquigiovanni |
| 2007 | | Giant Asia Racing Team |
| 2008 | | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2009 | | Diquigiovanni–Androni |
| 2010 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2011 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2012 | | Androni Giocattoli–Venezuela |
| 2013 | | MTN–Qhubeka |
| 2014 | | MTN–Qhubeka |
| 2015 | | Pegasus Continental Cycling Team |
| 2016 | | UnitedHealthcare |
| 2017 | | IsoWhey Sports SwissWellness |
| 2018 | | Wilier Triestina–Selle Italia |
| 2019 | | Floyd's Pro Cycling |
| 2020 | | Team Sapura Cycling |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | | Movistar Team |
| 2023 | | EF Education–EasyPost |
| 2024 | | Equipo Kern Pharma |

### Asian team classification

| Year | Based | Team name |
| 1998 | | Philippines (national team) |
| 1999 | | Malaysia (national team) |
| 2000 | | Japan (national team) |
| 2001 | | Telekom Malaysia Cycling Team |
| 2002 | | Telekom Malaysia Cycling Team |
| 2003 | | Iran (national team) |
| 2004 | | Iran (national team) |
| 2005 | | Iran (national team) |
| 2006 | | Japan (national team) |
| 2007 | | Giant Asia Racing Team |
| 2008 | | Seoul Cycling Team |
| 2009 | | Iran (national team) |
| 2010 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2011 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2012 | | Astana |
| 2013 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2014 | | Tabriz Petrochemical Team |
| 2015 | | Pegasus Continental Cycling Team |
| 2016 | | Wisdom–Hengxiang Cycling Team |
| 2017 | | Vino–Astana Motors |
| 2018 | | Astana |
| 2019 | | Vino–Astana Motors |
| 2020 | | Team Sapura Cycling |
| 2021 | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic | No race due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2022 | | Terengganu Polygon Cycling Team |
| 2023 | | Roojai Online Insurance |
| 2024 | | JCL Team Ukyo |

## Sponsor

* Telekom Malaysia
* Petronas
* Genting Malaysia
* Maju Group
* BSN
* Altel
* Terengganu
* Proton Holdings
* Tourism Malaysia
* DRB-HICOM