REMBAU, Negeri Sembilan, Oct 2 – Following two close calls, Riley Pickrell of the Modern Adventure Cycling Team captured his first Le Tour de Langkawi 2026 (LTdL26) stage win today, out-sprinting the peloton in Stage 6 from Pandan Indah to Rembau, Negeri Sembilan.
Pickrell, 25, who previously conceded to the prowess of XDS-Astana rider Matteo Malucelli, the current holder of the Sprint King blue jersey sponsored by the 2027 SEA and Para Games Organizing Secretariat (MASOC) on Stages 1 and 3, proved to have more power in today’s final dash.
The Canadian rider led the main peloton to wrap up the 121.3km route with a time of 2 hours, 40 minutes and 6 seconds. With 10 bonus points earned, he continues to challenge Malucelli (44 points), narrowing the gap to just 5 points.
To make his victory even sweeter – his parents, Douglas and Susan were present to witness his win, having followed the Victoria City, Vancouver native’s campaign since Stage 1 in Kampar.
However, a slight piece of bad news came in the form of a relegation penalty handed to his lead-out man, Scott McGill for a deviation infraction while celebrating Pickrell’s victory.
Tudor Pro Cycling rider Lennart Jasch retained the overall leader’s orange jersey sponsored by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS). He also practically secured the King of the Mountains polka dot jersey sponsored by Bubbles O2 for this 30th edition by adding 3 more points to his tally, 4 points ahead of his closest rival Petr Rikunov (TopWheel Rotor Chengdu), who won in Cameron Highlands.
Aisan Racing Team rider Yuhi Todome, who crossed the line in 25th place, retained the Best Asian Rider white jersey sponsored by the National Sports Council (NSC) since Stage 2 at Gunung Jerai.
However, victory did not come easy for Pickrell, who expressed his gratitude to his teammates for positioning him well coming into the final bend, roughly 400 meters from the finish line.
“The goal of coming to this LTdLis to win a stage, and it paid off today after coming so close twice before this.
“We reviewed our mistakes from previous stages and managed to rectify them today. There are two more flat stages ahead, and I will try my very best to win again,” said the former Israel-Premier Tech ProTeam rider, who joined Modern Adventure this season.
Meanwhile, Malucelli, who has worn the blue jersey since his Stage 1 victory from Shah Alam to Kampar, admitted to feeling the fatigue, particularly after the two early climbing zones at Ampang and Bukit Hantu.
“The peloton moved at a fast pace, and I struggled a bit after those climbs. My teammates had to wait and pull me back into the pack. But credit to him (Pickrell), he had more energy today, and sometimes my strategy just doesn’t work.
“However, I will keep trying to add to my stage win tally over the remaining two flat stages,” said the Italian rider, who won the LTdL 2024 Sprint King title with the Japanese team, UKYO.
Jasch noted that his effort to gather points at the Ampang climb was out of respect for the King of the Mountains jersey he was targeting, alongside the orange jersey he has worn every day.
“Every jersey demands respect and is very valuable. Now there are only two stages left, and we will continue to give our best in every stage.
“Although it looks easy, the reality is far from it because we are forced to work hard every day to keep an eye on our closest rivals, chase down breakaways and control the pace,” said the 25-year-old German rider, who holds a comfortable 42-second lead over his closest contender, Jan Castellon Ribalt from Caja Rural.
He also praised his teammate, Seppe Van den Boer, for repeating his third-place finish following his earlier performance in Stage 2 at Kuala Kangsar.
The stage 6 race – held under scorching weather, saw an early breakaway group of three riders in Alan Jousseaume (TotalEnergies), Julen Arriola (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Adne van Engelen (Terengganu TSG) made a move.
They were later joined by four other riders – Kieran Haug (Modern Adventure), Juan Martinez (Picnic PostNL), Mikel Retegi (Equipo Kern Pharma) and Rikunov, who together opened up a gap of nearly 2 minutes ahead.
The peloton, led by Astana and Tudor, picked up the pace to reel in the breakaway group, ultimately neutralizing attempts by Retegi and Jousseaume inside the final 7km.
LTdL26 continues tomorrow with Stage 7, covering a distance of 158.9km from Malacca City to Batu Pahat, Johor. The route features three intermediate sprint zones at Tangkak, Bukit Kepong and Parit Sulong before ending at Dewan Jubli Intan Sultan Ibrahim.
The 30th edition of LTdL26, categorized as a 2.ProSeries event, is organised by KBS through NSC in collaboration with the Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF).
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