Vinokourov to lead Astana team in Langkawi Tour

Alexandre Vinokourov will lead Kazakhstan cycling team Astana in Langkawi Tour that will be held in Malaysia in February, 2012, Tengrinews.kz reports, citing Velosportnews.ru. Kazakhstan cyclist competed in Malaysia race in 1997 for the first time. Assan Bazayev, Alexander Dyachenko, Dmitry Gruzdev, Valentin Iglinskiy and Andrey Zeits will defend Astana colors alone with Vinokourov in February, 2012. “I always wished to ride this race once again. But every time it didn’t get into my teams’ schedule or didn’t coincide with my training schedule. Langkawi Tour has got a special place in my heart. I always knew that this was a well-organized race,” Vinokourov said. Emir Abdul Jalal, an organizer of the Tour is sure that arrival of the Kazakhstan cyclist will enhance the prestige of the race. “It is a great honor for us to welcome Alexandre Vinokourov in our country. We are looking forward to meeting him as a cyclist and the captain of the team,” Abdul Jalal said. 22 teams in total will take part in the Malaysia race.