Ren Bao hopes Asean award will be start of better things to come

PASIR PUTEH: The Asean Best Stage Rider award may not be the biggest honour in the Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL), but for Tsen Ren Bao, it represents a promising start to greater achievements ahead.

Riding for Australia’s St George Continental Cycling Team, Ren Bao was the top Malaysian finisher in Stage Three from Gerik to Pasir Puteh – a tough 198.2km route filled with punishing climbs and high-speed descents.

He finished 28th overall in a tightly contested bunch sprint with a time of 4’28:04s, earning him the newly introduced Asean Best Stage Rider award.

The award, created in conjunction with Kuala Lumpur hosting the 46th Asean Summit, does not affect the overall standings. Still, Ren Bao sees it as a timely boost to his confidence as he looks forward to the remaining five stages.

“It’s definitely a beginning for me, and it really lifted my motivation today,” said Ren Bao.

“I felt good early on and told the boys, I didn’t care if I crashed or died today – I just wanted it so badly.

“I took the risk, stood by it, and we made it happen. I have to thank my teammates for helping me position myself in the final 5km.

“It was a very chaotic race with the back-to-back climbs leading into the sprint.”

The 23-year-old also shared that one of his biggest motivations was to follow in his father’s footsteps.

Ren Bao is the son of Malaysian cycling legend Tsen Seong Hoong, who competed in eight editions of the LTdL.

His father also brought glory to the country by winning the gold medal at the 1995 SEA Games in Thailand, followed by a silver at the next edition in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Ren Bao admitted that he had been feeling the pressure to deliver a strong performance, having often found himself living in the shadow of his father’s achievements.

“I just wanted to get on the podium, even if it’s for the South-East Asian category, so I can say I’ve gone one better than my dad. He once wore the Asian jersey, so I want to get one too – just to be better than him,” he said with a smile.