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Bos Takes First Stage, Yellow Jersey Despite Blazing Heat

KULIM, Feb 21 (Bernama) -- The blazing heat along the 162.7km stretch from Kangar, Perlis to Kulim, Kedah did not deter Holland's Theo Bos of Blanco Pro Cycling Team to claim his maiden Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) race stage win.

The 29-year-old sprinter clocked four hours and 17 seconds, ahead of France's Bryan Coquard (Team Europcar) and Italy's Andrea Guardini (Astana Pro Team).

"I was surprised to win this race. On paper, it seems easy but it was difficult in the final. The other rider in my team helped me out. With (Greame) Brown helping me...he has lots of experience racing here and it is a great advantage for me, as compared to the other guys.

"It is always hard to say that I can expect to win. I never expect to win easy...so, we have a lot of respect for our opponents. It is not an easy race and I know that another sprinter would win the next race," said Bos at a press conference.

He added that he would like to win another stage although tomorrow's route includes a climb at Bukit Sumpitan in Perak. "I'm always afraid of mountain...it was not my best ability. I will try to survive those races," he said.

Beside winning the first stage, the 2004 Athens Olympic Games silver medalist also clinched the Yellow (general classification) and Blue jersey (sprint competition).

After today's stage, Bos topped the general classification leaderboard with 4'00:07s, just one second ahead of China's Wang Meiyin (Hengxiang Cycling Team).

In the sprint competition, Bos and Wang collected 15 points each, while Coquard currently in third placing, 14 points.

Meanwhile, Wang claimed the white (best Asian rider) and red jersey (mountains competition).

"The competition was really fast and I really want to race here because the competition level was very high. It is not very easy to win."

In the team general classification, United Healthcare Pro Cycling leads the pace with a time of 12'00:51s.

Stage Two Friday will be over a 117.8km course from Serdang, Kedah to Kuala Kangsar, Perak, with three sprint zones at Selama, Lenggong and Kati.

The 132 riders also have to overcome a category 2 climb at Bukit Sumpitan.

-- BERNAMA

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