BUTTERWORTH: Malaysian riders suffered some wretched luck in the second stage of Petronas Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) today (Sept 30) as at least six riders were involved in crashes ahead of tomorrow’s all-important queen stage.
Terengganu Cycling Team’s (TSG) Nur Aiman Rosli, Malaysia Pro Cycling’s (MPC) Zulfikri Zulkifli, Syawal Mazlin and Fahmi Khairul as well as Malaysia national team’s Elmi Jumari were all involved in a crash just a few hundred metres from the finish line in Butterworth.
While Aiman, Zulfikri, Syawal and Fahmi suffered cuts and bruises, Elmi came off the worse as he suffered a broken finger and was immediately rushed off to hospital.
He was initially sent to Seberang Jaya Hospital but was later moved to Bagan Specialist Hospital.
Initially, there were rumours that Elmi’s finger had been severed in the crash but national team coach Yusof Nasir dispelled that notion.
Yusof, however, admitted that it is unlikely Elmi will play any further part in LTdL this year.
“I have been informed by our staff that Elmi’s condition is stable now. His finger was broken in the accident, not severed,” said Yusof.
“I don’t think Elmi will be able to compete in the rest of the tour which is a huge blow for us as he is the only sprinter in the squad.
“What is important now is that he is able to make a full recovery. We hope and pray for the best.”
To add to his misery, Elmi was also fined 200 Swiss francs (RM977) by the commissaires for deviating from his sprint line during the bunch sprint.
Aiman suffered abrasion wounds and bruises to his arms, legs and hips but is determined to soldier on in the third stage tomorrow in his quest to emerge the overall winner in the Asian riders classification (white jersey).
“Unfortunately, some riders crashed in front of me not too far from the finish and I just had nowhere to go,” said Aiman, who leads the Asian riders classification with a marginal one second advantage.
“I went straight into them and ended up crashing. So far, I think my injuries are not too bad. I will try to rest as best as possible tonight.
“I am still determined to keep the white jersey and will try my best in tomorrow’s stage.”
National team rider Ren Bao Tsen also crashed earlier in the second stage and suffered some cuts on his knees and legs but was still able to finish in the main group today.
The third stage tomorrow, which is seen as the queen stage for this year’s tour, will start in Taiping and end with a hors categorie climb up to Cameron Highlands, covering a total distance of 170.3km.
– NST
