Ryan Gibbons wins 2017 LTdL

Team Dimension Data rider, Ryan Gibbons of South Africa emerged as the overall winner in the 2017 Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) Cycling Championship which concluded, here today.

Despite finishing fourth overall in the final stage (stage eight) involving a distance of 112km from Setiawangsa to Putrajaya today, the 22-year-old rider won the Yellow Jersey with a total accumulated time of 29 hours 04 minutes and 57 seconds.

Gibbons also swept the Teal jersey as King of Sprint with an unassailable 75 points, followed by American Travis McCabe of UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling Team (62 points) and Italian Jakub Mareczko was third with 54 points.

For the record, Gibbons is the fourth South African rider to claim the Yellow Jersey after the late Ryan Cox of disbanded Barloworld in 2005, David George of South Africa national team (2006) and Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg of Team Dimension Data, last year.

McCabe won the final stage today, followed by the Australian rider, Anthony Giacoppo of IsoWhey Sports SwissWellness in second position while Italian rider, Riccardo Stacchiotti of Nippo Vini-Fantini was third.

Chief Judge, Ibrahim Omar awarded the same time of 2 hours and 39 minutes after all top 10 riders crossed the finish line in a bunch group. - BERNAMA