Universiti Teknologi MARA Shah Alam:The Penultimate Destination of Le Tour de Langkawi 2011

Stage 10 - February 1 - UITM Shah Alam-Kuala Lumpur (104.6km)


Stage 10 - UiTM Shah Alam to Kuala Lumpur Loop
Tuesday, 1 February 2011 | 104.6 km

Start venue: UiTM Shah Alam
Start time: 1300 hrs
Finish venue: Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur
Estimated time of arrival: 1514 hrs


The traditional Kuala Lumpur Criterium has been replaced with a ride into the metropolitan city of Kuala Lumpur from the educational centre of UiTM in Shah Alam. The peloton will pass the traditional finish line at Dataran Merdeka, but then head into criterium mode on a loop around the city, passing the finish line another five times before the actual stage finish.


Prior to that, they would have passed the final two category 4 climbs of the Tour at Bukit Cahaya Alam, which comes 15.2km into the stage, and Puncak Alam, after 20.6km. The final intermediate sprints would have been done with as the pass Paya Jaras after 42.6km, and on the second and fourth passages across the finish line.
Traditionally, this stage will be left for the sprinters to do battle with the general classification, mountains classification and Asian riders' classification all left to the wearers at the start of the day. But nevertheless, the unexpected is always expected in Le Tour de Langkawi and this could be the year for anything to happen.

Since the inauguration of the bicycle racing event Le Tour de Langkawi in 1996, it has attracted worldwide interest from world-renowned names and well-known teams in the international cycling arena. This event has brought the world to Malaysia through tourist arrivals, and taken Malaysia to the world through live broadcasts to 100 million viewers across continents through ESPN and Eurosport. Last year’s Le Tour de Langkawi created history for the country when Anuar Manan became the first Malaysian cyclist to win in one of the stages. He was also the first Asian rider to secure the Overall Sprint Jersey award since this annual cycling event was first organised 15 years before.

The 16th edition of Le Tour de Langkawi this year is particularly special for Universiti Teknologi MARA as our Shah Alam campus has been chosen as the venue for Stage 10 of the cycling race on Tuesday, 1 February 2011, which is the final stage before the biggest cycling event in Asia ends in Kuala Lumpur later in the day.

We are privileged to have the Minister of Higher Education, YB Dato’ Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, grace the flagging off ceremony for the peloton to proceed to their final destination in Dataran Merdeka, where the 10-day event will come to a close. The flagging off will take place at UiTM’s parade ground, adjacent to the university stadium.

In conjunction with the peloton’s stop-over in our Shah Alam campus, the university’s Sports Centre has lined up numerous programmes to make this an even more memorable occasion, not only for the UiTM fraternity but also for residents of Shah Alam who would like to be part of the festivities. Activities which have been lined up to celebrate Stage 10 of Le Tour de Langkawi 2011 include Le Tour de UiTM Aerobics session, the Morning Jamm Crew with the campus radio station, the UFM Radio, stalls set up for exhibitions and sales of items, as well as performances by teams which showcase traditional dance and music, namely, dikir barat, gamelan, kompang and rebana ubi.

Universiti Teknologi MARA would like to extend our appreciation to the organisers of Le Tour de Langkawi 2011, namely, the Ministry of Youth and Sports Malaysia and the Malaysian National Cycling Federation, for giving us the opportunity to be taken  on board this prestigious and internationally renowned bicycle racing championship. We would also like to invite the UiTM populace, residents of Shah Alam, and those in the neighbouring vicinity, to be part of this historic gathering of international cycling community.