Kuala Kangsar:Italian sprinter Matteo Malucelli from the XDS Astana Team claimed victory in Stage 3 of the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) 2026. He completed the 189.7-kilometre route from Sungai Petani to Kuala Kangsar in 4 hours, 31 minutes, and 59 seconds, finishing in a bunch sprint.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Malucelli edged out Riley Pickrell from Modern Adventure Pro Cycling and Seppe Van den Boer of Tudor Pro Cycling Team, who both recorded the same finish time. Malucelli attributed his win to a strategic sprint in the final 20 metres and praised his teammates for their support during the race.

With this victory, Malucelli secured 10 bonus points and 15 stage classification points, strengthening his lead in the points classification blue jersey with a total of 32 points. He leads Riley Pickrell, who has 24 points, and Ronan Auge of Unibet Rose Rockets, who has 14 points.

Malucelli noted that the intense heat, reaching 42 degrees Celsius, added to the challenge of the stage. Despite the moderate pace, the conditions made the race demanding. Following his performance, Malucelli plans to take two days to recover before tackling the upcoming mountain stages.

Earlier in the tour, Malucelli overcame a pre-race training crash to win Stage 1, securing both the overall leader's orange jersey and the sprinter classification blue jersey. He finished ahead of Riley Pickrell and Fernando Gaviria of Caja Rural-Seguros RGA in a high-speed sprint.

In the general classification, Lennart Jasch of Tudor Pro Cycling Team retains the leader's orange jersey with a total time of 121603, maintaining a 20-second lead over Abel Balderstone from Caja Rural-Seguros RGA. Castellon, Jasch's teammate, is third, 38 seconds behind.

Yuhi Todome from Aisan Racing Team leads the Best Asian Rider category, and Lennart Jasch tops the King of the Mountains standings. Stage 4 will challenge riders with a 142.3 km route from Meru Raya to Cameron Highlands, featuring three sprints and a grueling summit climb at Tanah Rata.