Chest illness spoils Darren Lapthorne’s chances of overall victory at the Le Tour de Langkawi 2012
Darren Lapthorne of Drapac Cycling Team was looking good at the ongoing Le Tour de Langkawi.
He put up a good fight during the event and tried hard to stay in the picture for the overall classifications.
The cyclist suffered severe chest pains during the queen stage of the race, which ruined his chances at the overall classifications.
Team Manager Jonathan Breekveldt told Cyclingnews, "Unfortunately Darren woke up Wednesday morning with chest pains and was not feeling 100 per cent which, after being checked by the race doctor was diagnosed as a muscular issue and is now being treated".
Darren was holding the top spot after the stage 5 classifications but could not continue his dominance during the sixth stage of the race.
He started the race with a lead of 37 seconds over Tom Danielson and 46 seconds over Alexsandr Dyachenko.
Lapthorne’s 59 place finish during the 108 kilometre chase to Genting Highlands was enough to ruin his chances for the overall victory.
He has now dropped down to the 38th overall position, with a deficit of over 14 minutes on the new race leader, Jose Rodolfo Serpa Perez, of Team Androni Giocattoli.
Breekveldt noted that the team tried its best to help Darren but his health worsened in the final kilometres of the race.
"We controlled the race perfectly to the base of the climb … Darren made the final selection of seven riders but when he pushed his body the chest injury became more apparent and left him unable to compete with the leaders,” he continued.
It is still not certain whether or not Lapthorne will ride the coming stages of the Malaysian race, as he is being treated by the team’s doctor.
The team is having a disappointing season, as its star rider, Adam Phelan, who finished second during the opening stage of the race, also had to abandon the tour because of a knee injury.
Darren was the only hope for Team Drapac Cycling's overall dominance. The team will now focus on stage victories for the remaining stages of the race.
Floris Goesinnen and Rhys Pollock are also capable of grabbing stage victories for the Australian Continental team.
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