Tour de Malindo among slew of sports events to be revived

KUCHING (Nov 28): The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development (MYSED) will be reviving the Tour De Malindo, said Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah when winding up his ministerial speech at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting today.

The annual cycling event, which was jointly hosted by the West Kalimantan Government, Indonesia and Sarawak Government, is expected to be revived in 2024.

The one-day tour over 62.2km will be flagged off at Balai Karangan in Kabupaten Sanggau, West Kalimantan Province and to finish at the Serian Conference Centre.

Elaborating on another sport revival, Abdul Karim added that his ministry is also initiating a revival of Motorsport activities, including the Motocross Championship, Go-Kart competitions and Cub Prix Racing.

“Capitalising on existing relevant facilities, namely in Miri and Sibu, we are welcoming interested Motorsport clubs and associations to come forward with their proposal to jointly organise the events with my Ministry in future,” he said.

On another note, Abdul Karim said the upcoming Kemuyang Nature Challenge scheduled on Dec 16 in Sibu is expected to draw 300 participants from throughout the state.

Previously, a similar nature adventure sport, the Lambir Eco Amazing Race, was held in Miri on October 29.

“As this sport is still in its inception in Sarawak, my Ministry is in the process of establishing a locally-based association to drive its promotion and improvement.

“We shall be able to promote the sport among our locals once everything is in place, encouraging them to compete with competitors from other Malaysian states.

“With an ongoing academy in the works, we should be able to attract with our own local stars who will be ready to compete in tournaments alongside competitors from other countries,” he said.

The minister also provided an update on the expansion of the Sparta Race, a highly anticipated international obstacle race.

“We are confident by working closely with the Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts (MTCP) as well as several dedicated NGOs.

“This event will continue to boost the sport tourism industry by attracting more foreign and domestic participants from across the regions,” he added.