DE VOS WINS WITH SOLO CHARGE

Rally Cycling rider breaks away for first-ever stage win

RALLY Cycling’s Adam De Vos launched a solo attack in the final two kilometres to win Stage 3 of Le Tour de Langkawi and take the yellow jersey, becoming the third overall leader in the race in as many days in Kuala Terengganu yesterday.

This was the 24-year-old British Columbia-born De Vos’ first-stage win in a hors category race and his first time wearing the yellow jersey in a race.

De Vos took victory after launching a solo attack while a group of four escapees had closed in on the finish line of the 166km stage that began in Kota Baru.

Kim Daeyon of KSPO Bianchi Asia Procycling took second spot ahead of Nik Mohd Azwan Zulkiflie of Forca Amskins, while Harrison Sweeny of Mitchelton BikeXchange took fourth spot.

Forca Amskins won the bunch sprint for fourth from the peloton that arrived at the finish line in Dataran Shahbandar 1 minute and 19 seconds after the leading quartet.

This result moved Daeyon into the points classification lead, while Nik Mohd Azwan sent the local fans into a frenzy after he took the white jersey as the leading Asian rider.

De Vos sits atop the general classification with a total time of 12 hours 45 minutes and 31 seconds, holding a 14-second lead over Nik Mohd Azwan in second, while Sweeny is third a further 22 seconds adrift.

Daeyon enters the fourth stage today wearing the green jersey with a total of 27 points, after taking the maximum 15 points in all three intermediate sprints of the day, while Nik Mohd Azwan leads the Asian riders' classification by 1 minute and 10 seconds, ahead of previous leader Seo Joonyong of KSPO-Bianchi.

Meanwhile, Nik Mohd Azwan continued his strong performance in this year's race by taking the third step on the podium and taking the Asian riders' classification lead, while also sitting in second in the overall general classification.

“It was not easy because after the difficult stage from Gerik yesterday, the distance in today's stage was also quite long.

“But from the beginning I had vowed to register some points in the intermediate sprints to collect the bonus seconds needed to challenge for the Asian riders' classification.”

Stage 4 today will cover a distance of 177.6km from Dungun to Pekan, which includes three intermediate sprint zones in Paka (17.5km), Chukai (72.3km) amd Balok (112.1km), and a Category 1 climb in Kijal at KM56.3.