BINTULU: The Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) hopes that the state governments will be more serious in organising the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) race together with the ministry in the future.

Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh said that the states are aware of the returns from organising races which lead to attracting tourists and boosting the local economy, but on the other hand, they are not willing to bear the cost of organising as a sponsor.

“Most states are keen for the race to come to their states but they are not keen to give money, that is the challenge that we (KBS) face. It is all about costing, even last year I had to explain in Parliament why the race was not going to Langkawi (2023 edition).

“We (KBS) always try our best to cover places that we feel are interesting for both tourism as well as the cycling (racing) aspect,“ she said in a press conference in conjunction with the final stage of LTdL, here today.

She also revealed that the total sponsorship funds for LTdL amounted to RM8.1 million, including from private companies such as Petronas and Tourism Malaysia, while KBS and the National Sports Council (MSN) spent almost RM12 million to ensure that the eight-day race ran smoothly.

“We do hope that all the states pay more attention to the sports development fund. They need to allocate and not just see this as an investment but that it also brings in tourism to the state.

“There are so many platforms for states to promote themselves but if they do not set aside funds (it will not happen). By now all states should know that LTdL is an annual event,“ she said.

Earlier, Hannah witnessed the flag-off of cyclists for the final stage of 2024 LTdL competition involving a route around the Bintulu division for a distance of 147.5 kilometres.