Tour de Langkawi Skipped Langkawi and Went Looking for Mountains Instead

The Tour de Langkawi does not go to Langkawi this year. Read that again.

The 30th edition runs from September 27 to October 4 across eight stages and 1,258.5 kilometres, starting in Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam and finishing in Putrajaya. It covers eight states in Peninsular Malaysia, and the island that gives the race its name is not on the route. Neither is any stage on the East Coast.

A smaller budget, a harder race

The reason is money. Youth and Sports Minister Dr Taufiq Johari said the cabinet approved RM12 million for the race, down from the RM18 million spent on some previous editions. Including Langkawi would have cost considerably more, he said, so the route stays on the West Coast this year. He suggested the East Coast could return next year in a rotation.

Yet the same announcement promised the toughest route in the race's 30-year history. Organisers were clear about the reason: three summit finishes.

The first is new. Stage 2 goes from Taiping to the top of Gunung Jerai, a Category 1 climb that starts at sea level and rises to nearly 1,000 metres. It is the first time the race has finished there.

Two beasts back to back

Stage 4 finishes in the Cameron Highlands, on a route from Tapah to Tanah Rata that reports say is significantly tougher than the Simpang Pulai ascent used in the previous two editions. Then comes Stage 5, ending at Genting Highlands.

Both are Hors Catégorie climbs, the toughest rating. Cameron Highlands sits at 1,451 metres and Genting Highlands at 1,629. The back-to-back combination has only been used twice before, in 2001 and 2011. The organisers needed the green light from Resorts World Genting management to bring it back.

Both climbs have decided recent editions. Simon Carr of EF Education won the overall title in 2023 after conquering Genting, and Britain's Max Poole took it in 2024 via the Cameron Highlands. Last year Joris Delbove of TotalEnergies won the general classification.

The field reflects the change. TotalEnergies have named Jordan Jegat, a 27-year-old who finished 10th overall at the Tour de France in July, to lead a six-rider team built around climbers. All 20 invited teams confirmed their participation.

Route design picks the winner before the start

Here is the opinion. A stage race is won on the route map as much as on the road.

Sprinters can still win days. The organisers say the remaining three stages carry only mild climbs. But the yellow jersey is a different matter. With summit finishes in Stages 2, 4 and 5, the general classification could be decided by the end of Genting Highlands, roughly halfway through the race.

That is a bold design. It concentrates the drama into the first five days and makes every climber who can hold on to a wheel a threat. The King of the Mountains points reflect that, with 15 for Gunung Jerai and 25 for each of the Hors Catégorie climbs.

It also carries a risk. A race decided early can turn its final days into a procession. The three remaining stages then become a test of who can protect a lead, not who can take one.

Organisers have taken that gamble on purpose, and cyclists who prefer to attack uphill will love it. Smaller budgets often force sport to be creative, and putting mountains at the centre is a creative answer.

Still, the odd choice hangs over the whole thing: the Tour de Langkawi has built its toughest edition by leaving Langkawi behind. If mountains are cheaper than islands, will the race ever go back?