Kristoff, Blikra To Lead Uno-x Mobility At LTdL2025

​KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 (Bernama) — Despite being at the tail end of his career, Uno-X Mobility ProTeam rider Alexander Kristoff is still considered a contender to watch at the eight-day Le Tour de Langkawi 2025 (LTdL25), schedule to begin from Sept 28 to Oct 5.

With 98 victories over his 20-year professional career, Kristoff has more than enough experience to add to his winning collection at LTdL25 after the route for each stage at this year tour seems to favour his strengths as a sprinter and puncher who likes to make solo breaks.

​While all eyes are on his teammate, the 2022 King of Sprints Erlend Blikra is likely to repeat his performance from three years ago especially at long stages like Stage 3 (Gerik-Pasir Puteh), Stage 7 (Melaka-Medini) and Stage 8 (Tangkak-KLCC) and it seems perfectly suited to Kristoff’s style, as he’s known for excelling in one-day classic races.

​LTdL25 chief operating officer (COO), Emir Abdul Jalal, said Kristoff’s presence at the 29th edition of the tour is a huge honour for cycling fans in Malaysia, especially since the 38-year-old rider has announced his retirement at the end of this season.

​”Although Kristoff has past his golden era, his presence at LTdL25 is enough to draw a crowd and with his vast experience riding in Grand Tours and monument classic races, it wouldn’t be surprising if he continues to add to his win tally,” he said in a statement today.

​Kristoff, one of the most successful Norwegian cyclists in the sport’s history, who was ranked second in the UCI in 2015 and placed second at the 2017 World Championships, first made his name with the Glud & Marstrand-Horsens team in 2006.

He has since worn the jersey of world-class teams like BMC Racing, Team Katusha, UAE Team Emirates and Intermarche-Wanty Gobert before joining Uno-X in 2023.

​With four stage wins at the Tour de France and monument classic victories like Milan-San Remo, Gent-Wevelgem and Tour of Flanders during his prime, Kristoff still has plenty of gas in the tank.

He has recorded two wins this year namely – Stage 3 of the Vuelta a Andalucia and more recently, Stage 2 of the Arctic Race of Norway on August 8.

​”Blikra’s presence heats up the competition for the King of Sprints orange jersey sponsored by KBS because there will be many top sprinters this year, including the defending champion Matteo Malucelli and Gleb Syritsa (XDS Astana), Alberto Dainese (Tudor), Manuele Tarozzi (Bardiani) and Fabio Jakobsen (Picnic PostNL),” Emir said.

Uno-X is expected to pin its hopes on three riders – Amund Grondahl Jansen, Anders Halland Johanessen and Johannes Kulset to challenge for the Petronas-sponsored green jersey for the general classification.

The three riders balanced experience and abilities on hilly and flat terrain make them favourite candidates.

The 29th edition of the PLTdL25 will cover all 12 states on the peninsula, with a total distance of 1,243.5km, starting in Langkawi Island and ending at KLCC.

The race will begin in Langkawi Island on September 28 with the first stage covering a distance of 96.5 kilometres (km) followed by Stage 2 from Padang Besar, Perlis to Kepala Batas, Penang (170.1km); Stage 3 from Gerik, Perak to Pasir Puteh, Kelantan (198.2km); Stage 4 from Kuala Terengganu to Kemaman (140.8km); Stage 5 from Temerloh to Fraser’s Hill, Pahang (133.7km); Stage 6 from Shah Alam, Selangor to Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan (123.4km); Stage 7 from Melaka to Medini, Johor (214.6km) and Stage 8 from Tangkak, Johor to Kuala Lumpur (180.5km) on October 5.

​The 2.ProSeries status race on the UCI Asia Tour calendar is organised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) through the National Sports Council (MSN) in collaboration with the Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF).

— BERNAMA

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