LE Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) organisers Human Voyage Sdn Bhd will conduct a thorough screening of teams from China should they decide to compete in this year’s Feb 6-15 race due to the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.
Human Voyage chief operating officer Shahaizereen A. Hamid said the organisers will follow the requirements set by the Health Ministry in dealing with the situation.
“One team from China have already withdrawn from the race as a precautionary measure. We are still waiting for confirmation from two other China teams as well as one from Hong Kong,” said Shahaizereen in Petaling Jaya yesterday.
“We are aware of the necessary steps we have to take and will follow the standard operating procedure set by the Health Ministry.
“Riders from China must undergo a medical checkup. They will have to forward their results to us, which will then be handed to the Health Ministry for clearance before they can compete here.
“The Health Ministry has also informed us that there will be a (health) screening of the riders once they land here and they could be quarantined at the airport before they are allowed in.”
Hengxiang Cycling Team, a continental outfit, are the team who have withdrawn from the race.
Shahaizereen is, however, confident that there should not be any issues concerning their inclusion here this year.
“None of the China teams are from the virus-hit areas. Even the team that withdrew were also not from the area.”
Shahaizereen added: “One of the two China teams yet to confirm their participation are also based outside of China.
“We are not too worried because most teams are already training abroad at the moment. It is unlikely that they will re-enter China for the time being.
“We still have time to finalise the list of teams for the competition.”
This year’s LTdL is set to enter East Malaysia for the first time since 1997, with Sabah hosting a criterium a day before the start of the race. Stage One will be flagged off in Kuching.
Other states involved this year are Terengganu, Pahang, Federal Territories (Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur) Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah.