KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) vice-president Datuk Amarjit Singh retained his UCI management committee seat at the International Cycling Union (UCI) elections in Leuven, Belgium, on Friday.
Amarjit was re-elected to the UCI management committee for the 2021-2025 term after garnering 38 votes out of 43 delegates, including nine from the Asian continent.
Challenger Syeikh Khalid al-Khalifa of Bahrain, who is also a member of the executive board of directors in the Asian Cycling Confederation (ACC), only amassed five votes while two other Asian contenders Sun Weimin (China) and Mohsen Solgi (Iran) withdrew.
Though he was confident of keeping his post, Amarjit admitted that he was surprised by his winning margin.
"Honestly, I was taken aback at my winning margin. I thank all my supporters, especially UCI president David Lappertient and vice president Dr Mohamed Wagih Azzam as well as MNCF president Datuk Abu Samah Wahab who helped a great deal in my election campaign," he said in a statement.
Amarjit, who is also a member of the ACC executive board, will serve another four years in the world cycling body after first winning the post in Bergen, Norway in 2017.
Amarjit stressed that he will continue to champion Asia's cause in cycling and also in backing Malaysia's bid to host the World Track Cycling Championships, if finances permit.
"I will continue to uphold Asia's voice globally, aside from ensuring a smooth Malaysian agenda at world level, including the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) if any situation arises," he added.
Abu Samah called Amarjit's achievement a huge endorsement for Malaysian cycling and hopes he will keep Malaysia as well as other Asian nations flying high and stay well-connected with UCI.
Meanwhile, Amarjit's father Tan Sri Darshan Singh, who is arguably the first sports official in Malaysia to sit on the prestigious UCI Management Committee from 1996-2005, was ecstatic over his son's triumph on Friday.
"I am confident he can continue to assist Malaysia and other developing countries to uplift and promote cycling to a higher level," Darshan said when contacted. -- BERNAMA