‘Gracias’, Malaysia! Spain’s Garcia takes ToP honours

PETALING JAYA: Spaniard Marcos Garcia Fernandez navigated the fifth and final stage safely to become the first overall winner of the inaugural Tour of Peninsular (ToP).

There were plenty of chances to attack in what was a rolling stage, which started in Kuala Lipis and ended in Setiawangsa (151.4km) with intermediate sprints at Raub, Bentong, Gombak and two categorised climbs at Bentong and Genting Sempah but Garcia stood solid.

Moldovan Christian Raileanu (Team Sapura Cycling) took the final stage win yesterday in 3’19:12 with Mohammadesmaeil Chaichiraghimi (Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan) and Sofian Nabil Omar (Malaysia national team) coming in

second and third.

Garcia crossed the line 14 seconds later in the chasing group but it was more than enough to see him seal victory in the general classification (GC) with a comfortable three-minute advantage over his nearest rival Igor Chzhan of Kazakhstan (Vino-Astana Motors).

Garcia was delighted to secure the title after five tough days of open racing which, to many people’s surprise, did not feature a single bunch sprint finish.

“We managed to get a three-minute advantage in yesterday’s (Friday) stage and it was obviously important to defend it,” said the Spaniard via a translator.

“The start of the race today (yesterday) was a little crazy but we had enough time to regroup and maintain our calm. When the situation became better, we were able to control the race. Obviously, I feel very happy to win this event.

“I love racing in Malaysia as the people always support us. It is not for me to decide but if the team come back to race here next year, I will surely come back because this place is special.”