KUALA KLAWANG – The national cycling team was forced to continue the rest of their race at the 2022 Le Tour de Langkawi with only five riders after losing Ameer Ahmad Kamal to food poisoning yesterday.
Ameer’s illness hampered his efforts to finish the race within the time limit in the 157.3-km Stage 1 route from Kuala Pilah to Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
As per race regulations, he would not be allowed to join the remaining seven stages.
The Melaka-born cyclist said he had experienced stomach pain a day before the UCI ProSeries event began.
“I had already felt the pain in my stomach on Monday, but I tried to hold onto it and focused on doing my best at Stage 1.
“But as I approached the 70-km mark, the pain started to get worse and became unbearable at around the 130-km mark.
“As I rode on, I could not bear it anymore and knew I would not be able to make the race in time,” he said.
The 27-year-old admitted he was frustrated with the outcome as he had trained rigorously for the event.
Ameer, who is a 2017 SEA Games gold medallist, was one of a total of five riders in the event who were unable to finish the race within the set time limit.
However, team coach Mohd Yusof Nasir said Ameer’s absence would not dampen the team’s spirit as he had carefully mapped out a strategy for the them.
“This is what happens when you are in a race. It is quite normal.
“It was unfortunate to lose one rider, but we will focus on the remaining five and I believe they will do their best,” he added.
Aside from Ameer, his twin brother Ameen Ahmad Kamal is also in the national team alongside Nik Mohd Azwan Zulkiflie, Sofian Nabil Omar Mohd Bakri, Izzat Hilmi Abdul Halil, and Kee Zhe Yie.
They are continuing the race today in Stage 2, which is the longest route – 178.9km from Kuala Klawang to Raub. – The Vibes, October 12, 2022
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