PUTRAJAYA, 4 Oct – Matteo Malucelli met his personal target of leaving with three stage victories as he dominated Stage 8, the final stage of Le Tour de Langkawi 2026 (LTdL 26), which concluded in Putrajaya today.
The victory, his ninth overall career stage win at LTdL since 2024 – confirmed the 32-year-old Italian rider as the winner of the Sprint King blue jersey, sponsored by the 2027 SEA Games and Para Games Organising Secretariat (MASOC), equaling the stage win record held by Graeme Brown.
However, it remains well behind the record of 24 stage wins held by another Italian rider who once wore the XDS-Astana jersey, Andrea Guardini.
In the final sprint following the 188.3km ride from Muar, Malucelli once again beat Modern Adventure Cycling Team, Riley Pickrell, with Christian Van Rees (Picnic PostNL) finishing third as the main peloton crossed the line in 4 hours 6 minutes 17 seconds.
Meanwhile, Tudor Pro Cycling Team rider Lennart Jasch secured two jerseys at the conclusion of the 8-stage tour. He wore the Individual General Classification (GC) orange jersey, sponsored by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS), with a cumulative time of 26 hours 57 minutes 02 seconds – 26 seconds ahead of his contender from Caja Rural-Seguros RGA, Abel Balderstone.
Jasch, a 25-year-old Munich native who transitioned from speed skating to professional cycling less than three years ago, also locked in the King of the Mountains polka dot jersey sponsored by Bubbles O2 with 45 points, 4 points ahead of Wheeltop Rotor Chengdu rider Petr Rikunov.
Meanwhile, Aisan Racing Team rider Yuhi Todome capped off his hard effort on the Gunung Jerai climb by taking home the Best Asian Rider title, winning the white jersey sponsored by the National Sports Council (MSN), finishing 3 minutes 44 seconds ahead of Malaysian rider Tsen Ren Bao representing St George Continental Cycling Team.
In the team category, Caja Rural was crowned the best overall team in this 30th edition of LTdL26, clocking a cumulative overall time of 87 hours 02 minutes 12 seconds, 3 minutes 33 seconds ahead of Unibet Rose Rockets.
Indonesian representatives, Nusantara Cycling Team, retained their status as the Best Asian Team (87:42.33s), finishing 4 minutes 34 seconds ahead of WheelTop Rotor Chengdu.
Recounting his victory in Stage 8, Malucelli stated that his efforts succeeded due to the flawless teamwork of teammates Lev Gonov and Gleb Syritsa, who lead him out before opening a comfortable gap heading into the finish line.
“Today we controlled the race with Harold (Martin Lopez) and Aaron (Gates) working to chase down the breakaway group, and Gonov and Syritsa set me up at the front before sprinting in the final 50 meters. It was clearly great teamwork.
“Frankly, racing against just one or two main rivals is harder than when there are many sprinters. This time, other teams were more focused on GC standings, so there weren’t as many sprinters, which made head-to-head battles easier.
“I hope this success at LTdL26 convinces the team to send me here again in the future. I love racing in Malaysia, it feels like everyone knows me here,” said Malucelli, acknowledging that he feels more popular in Malaysia than in his home country of Italy.
As in the previous seven stages, several breakaway attempts were made. This time, a six-man breakaway group consisting of Oda Hijiri and Rui Udagawa (Aisan), Ibai Azanza (Equipo Kern Pharma), Zeb Kyffin (TSG), Jonathan Caicedo (Chengdu), and Peerapol Chawchiangwank successfully broke clear, controlling sprint zones at Simpang Ampat, Seremban and Nilai, as well as a climb zone at Bukit Mantin, before the peloton, driven by Tudor and Astana reeled them in.
Upon entering Putrajaya, the peloton accelerated quickly and Astana positioned four riders at the front, repeating the winning strategy Malucelli deployed in Stage 1 (Kampar) and Stage 3 (Kuala Kangsar).
A joyful tone was shared by Jasch, who had initially targeted only a top-five finish, but strong results at Gunung Jerai allowed him to focus on defending both the orange and polka dot jerseys he claimed.
“There may have been a minor error at Cameron Highlands (won by Rikunov), but I redeemed myself and held on until the end.
“Today, just like the three days before this, was extremely tough due to the longer distance and very hot weather. There were constant challenges, but I’m glad I received great support from my teammates.
“It feels wonderful every time I step onto the podium while hearing the music (Simply The Best), but that comes from hard work over the past few years and the trust given by management.
“It’s unbelievable. Less than a year as a professional cyclist and now I’ve won a 2.ProSeries status race. I hope this opens more eyes.
“Success here is deeply meaningful and special to me because I accomplished it outside of Europe,” said Jasch, who will fly to Italy next to compete in the 239km Giro Il Lombardia from Bergamo to Como this Saturday.
The 30th edition of the 1,285.5km LTdL26, which began on September 27, was organized by KBS through MSN in full cooperation with the Malaysian National Cycling Federation (PKBM).
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