KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Razlan Razali has resigned as Kuala Lumpur Cycling Association (KLCA) president less than a month after being elected to the position.
Razlan said he participated in a discussion with KLCA's young riders, their parents, former riders, as well as representatives from the Federal Territories Sports Council (FTSC) on March 14th.
During the meeting, a few parents alleged that issues involving racism, breach of trust, and misuse of funds from FTSC had occurred within the association in recent years.
A day later, Razlan disclosed that he participated in a heated KLCA committee meeting where the alleged issues were discussed.
Razlan sent his resignation letter, sighted by Timesport, on March 16.
Razlan, who won uncontested during the KLCA annual general meeting on Feb 25, said he resigned out of frustration due to some committee members' unwillingness to pursue positive changes.
It is understood that the parents are unhappy with the non-payment of allowances to certain riders as well as the general treatment of riders from certain races.
They have also requested a detailed financial audit.
"Yes, it is true that I have resigned," said Razlan when contacted today.
"It is true that these allegations have been made, and I have been told that the parents have also filed reports with the police and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
"I, however, have not sighted these reports.
"These are issues that need to be addressed but are not being handled with urgency. This is due to a number of committee members who have been with the association for a long time.
"Just a day after being elected, I received a letter from the riders' parents requesting a meeting with KLCA and FTSC.
"We had the meeting (March 14), but a few committee members did not attend. Only the new committee members attended, so we were not able to provide the parents with any answers.
"I was shocked to hear of all these issues raised by the parents.
"When I raised the matter in our committee meeting the next day, I was instead told to never engage with the parents.
"I believe this is wrong; we had a big difference in views.
"To me, it is important to engage with parents because the association is in charge of developing new talent for the state, and many of these riders are still very young.
"Apparently, KLCA had never engaged with parents prior to my arrival."
Razlan added that he is disappointed as he had big plans for KLCA.
"I resigned because I felt that I was unable to present my views and will just end up wasting my time," he said.
"Now I understand why KL has struggled to produce talent. Nobody wants to be involved with the association.
"The irony is that the committee members, who have been with the association for a long time, were the ones who invited me to join KLCA as president.
"Perhaps they thought I would be like previous presidents, who would just sit back. I am very much a hands-on person.
"It is sad because I was motivated to help raise KLCA's profile, as I had said in previous interviews. I wanted to make a difference."
Razlan is an accomplished motorsports administrator, previously the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) chief executive officer, and was also the team principal and co-owner of the RNF MotoGP Team.
He is also an avid cyclist and triathlete.