Take2 weeks ago
Rikunov wins stage 4 of Tour de Langkawi from the breakaway
Petr Rikunov won stage 4 of the 2026 Tour de Langkawi into Cameron Highlands, attacking in the final kilometre and having time to sit up before the line. It was the first breakaway win of this Tour de Langkawi, the first UCI victory of the season for Rikunov, and the first stage win for a Continental team at this race. Javier Ibáñez of Caja Rural–Seguros RGA finished second, 3 seconds back, and Alan Jousseaume of TotalEnergies was third at +9.
What this means
Rikunov regains the Bubbles King of the Mountain jersey he won on stage 1 and lost on stage 2.
Rikunov, who rides for the UCI Continental squad Wheeltop Rotor Chengdu Team, covered the 142.3km from Meru Raya to Cameron Highlands in 3:29:12 at an average of 40.813km/h. He said the breakaway's success came as a surprise: «Before the last climb, when I saw the gap was two minutes and 30 seconds, for me it was a surprise because the peloton style was just easy and we had a chance for the win in the breakaway.» By the final 5km he believed the win was his — «The last 5km, I believed it was for the win today» — and credited his legs over his companions in the closing kilometre: «But yeah, I have more strong legs today in the last km.» The win also regained him the Bubbles King of the Mountain jersey, which he won on stage 1 by sweeping up climbing points over the first 9km before losing it on stage 2. Overall leader Lennart Jasch of Tudor Pro Cycling Team kept the yellow jersey after the stage.
Sources
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