Kulai, 4 October 2024 – Italian rider Manuele Tarozzi of VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizane secured a thrilling victory in Stage 6 of the PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi 2024 (LTdL 2024). The 123.4-kilometer stage from Dataran Penggaram, Batu Pahat to Kulai saw Tarozzi outsprint EF Education-Easypost’s Stefan de Bod in a dramatic finish.
Tarozzi crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 28 minutes, and 58 seconds, edging out de Bod by a narrow margin. Tudor Pro Cycling Team’s Arvid de Kleijn completed the podium in third place.
The stage was marked by a fierce battle between Tarozzi and de Bod, who were neck and neck with just 500 meters to go. However, Tarozzi’s superior sprint proved decisive, earning him the stage win.
“I’m really happy today,” Tarozzi said. “Everything went according to plan. I maintained my pace during the breakaway and then sprinted faster in the last 2 kilometers. I knew Stefan would challenge me at the end, but I tried to stay ahead. My strategy worked today.”
Despite finishing second, de Bod acknowledged Tarozzi’s superior mental and physical preparation in the final moments. “I tried to challenge and catch him from behind, but I couldn’t,” he said. “I feel a bit disappointed for not winning today, but I’ll keep trying in the next two stages. Today’s race was a learning experience, and I’ll use it as motivation to chase victory in this race.”
Meanwhile, David Max Poole of Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL retained the Green Jersey as the overall leader with a time of 19:02:03. JCL Team UKYO’s Thomas Pesenti and Unai Iribar Jauregi from Equipo Kern Pharma are hot on his heels.
Arvid de Kleijn, known as ‘Little Gorilla,’ continued his dominance in the sprint classification, securing the Orange Jersey for the King of the Sprint. He now has 54 points, four points ahead of Matteo Malucelli from JCL Team UKYO.
The Polka Dot Jersey (King of the Mountains) remained with Burgos-BH rider Munoz Mario Aparicio, who has 27 points. David Max Poole and Anthon Charmig from Astana Qazaqstan Team are his closest challengers.
JCL Team UKYO’s Manabu Ishibashi maintained the White Jersey (Best Asian) with a time of 19:04:21, followed by his teammate Yuma Koishi and Keigo Kusaba from Aisan Racing Team.
In the overall team standings, Equipo Kern Pharma continued to lead with a time of 57:07:09, followed by Astana Qazaqstan Team and Team Polti Kometa. JCL Team UKYO remains in the lead in the Asian category.
Also Read: LTdL 2024 Stage 5: De Kleijn Strikes Again
The final two stages of the LTdL 2024 will take place in Sarawak. Stage 7 on Saturday will start from Miri to Bintulu, covering a distance of 199.3 kilometers and featuring three sprint zones and one climbing zone.
