GENTING HIGHLANDS, Oct 1 (Bernama) -- TotalEnergies rider Nicolas Breuillard bounced back from an early-tour illness to conquer the gruelling Queen Stage (Stage 5) of Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) 2026 from Tapah to Genting Highlands, today.
The 26-year-old French cyclist clocked 3 hours, 11 minutes and 26 seconds over the 125.7-kilometre (km) course, finishing ahead of Burgos-Burpellet-BH’s Josh Burnett (+8s) in second and race leader Lennart Jasch of Tudor Pro Cycling Team (+21s) in third.
"Yeah, I coming here for the GC with my team and my team believe in me for the GC, but I fall sick in the first day of... in Malaysia. After that, it was complicated. My teammate believe more than me... believe more in me," he said after the race, today.
The triumph marked a momentous milestone for Nicolas, securing a crucial professional victory before his move to WorldTeam outfit XDS Astana next season.
He highlighted the instrumental role played by his compatriot and teammate Valentin Retailleau who pushed the pace right from the start to establish a decisive breakaway.
"Yesterday at the briefing, we say we give all for the stage for me. And today, then kilometre zero, we push hard and we go to the breakaway with Valentin. And Valentin did an amazing job to take a good gap. And after, in the climb, it was hard for me, I had not good sensation, but I gave everything," he said.
Having accomplished his target of winning a race this season, Nicolas said his focus would now shift towards supporting teammate Mathis Le Berre in his general classification campaign.
Following Stage 5, Lennart Jasch still defended the leader's Orange Jersey with a cumulative time of 18:56:33, holding a 26-second lead over Caja Rural-Seguros RGA’s Abel Balderstone and 42 seconds over Jan Castellon.
Lennart also strengthened his grip on the King of the Mountains (Polka Dot) classification with 35 points followed by Wheeltop Rotor Chengdu Team’s Petr Rikunov (29 points) and Nicolas (25 points).
In the points classification, Astana's Matteo Malucelli stayed in front with 32 points, followed by Riley Pickrell of Modern Adventure Pro Cycling (24 points) and Ronan Auge of Unibet Rose Rockets (14 points).
Aisan Racing Team's Yuhi Todome retained the White Jersey as the Best Asian Rider (19:05:54), leading St George Continental Cycling Team duo Tsen Ren Bao (+3:44) and Tsen Ren Han (+5:25), with Ren Han also finishing as the best Malaysian of the stage in 29th place (+5:32).
Tomorrow's Stage 6 will cover 121.3km from Pandan Indah to Rembau, featuring three Category 3 climbs at Ampang, Bukit Hantu and Bukit Mendum, along with three sprint zones in Ulu Beranang, Rahang and Rembau.
— BERNAMA