Le Tour de Langkawi:
Local involvement must increase
NST, 06/12/2007
Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (right) launches
the official website of the Le Tour de Langkawi 2008, as Sports
Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar (left) looks on. - Picture by
FATHIL ASRI
THE Government, even if it feels
Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) is among the most significant international
events on the annual sporting calendar, will not hesitate to call
it off should it prove to be a failure.
Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina
Othman Said in conveying the message yesterday, called for tighter
control measures in the organisation and also emphasised the need
for development to also be generated from the Tour.
"After 13 years of the Tour,
it should be getting cheaper to organise, so the costs have to
be kept low to ensure that this event can be sustained,"
said Azalina.
"The Government wants the
event to continue, but as we know there have been issues in the
past. The local involvement must be there. After so long we cannot
be relying on foreign expertise to run the race."
The minister was speaking after
launching the event's logo, image, website and secretariat at
the National Aquatics Centre in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
"We want to see Malaysian
cyclists coming forward, not just an event which we organise for
foreigners to come and race anymore. Also, the element of grassroots
development has to be included," said Azalina.
The Tour, Asia's biggest cycling
event, will be held on Feb 9-17 and has thus far attracted what
is likely to be the strongest field ever featured in the race,
despite being shortened from 10 stages to nine for the first time.
A 2.HC event on the UCI Asia Tour
calendar, the LTdL next year will also feature for the first time
10 Asian teams riding among a record 25 teams.
All that is to be achieved with
a cost significantly lower than the total of RM20 million spent
on the 12th edition of LTdL this year.
"The Government doesn't want
to see wastage and we don't want this event to become a money
making machine for some."
"For that reason we have a
Government representative (Datuk Nik Mahmud Nik Yusof) chairing
the organising committee and a Malaysian (Datuk Naim Mohamad)
as the chief operating officer."
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