Welcomes The LEGO® Movie™ 4D A New Adventure

Iskandar Puteri, Malaysia (February 26, 2015) – After the launch of the "The LEGO® Movie™ 4D A New Adventure" at the LEGOLAND® Florida Resort, the new episode is now making it’s official debut at LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort.

Reuniting the stars of "The LEGO® Movie™" in a LEGOLAND Parks exclusive storyline, fans can look forward to finding out what happened after the blockbuster movie, when Emmet, Wyldstyle, Unikitty, MetalBeard and Benny reunite at the invitation of a shady new character, Risky Business, who plans to open a theme park bearing a suspicious resemblance to LEGOLAND.

Returning to voice their iconic characters are actors Elizabeth Banks (Wyldstyle), Nick Offerman (MetalBeard), Charlie Day (Benny) and Alison Brie (Unikitty). Actor, writer and comedian Patton Oswalt lends his voice to the scheming Risky Business, whose Evil Secret Plot requires the heroes to call on the Master Builder skills of a surprise ally to save the day.

"We are incredibly excited to welcome Emmet, Wyldstyle, Unikitty, MetalBeard and Benny to LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort! It’s a part of the commitment we made to our Park guests who have been supporting us since the opening of the Resort, to constantly keep them entertained. That commitment recently won us the Best Tourist Attraction award in the Man-Made Attraction category at the Malaysia Tourism Awards 2014/2015. With our guests always in mind, we believe that this attraction will delight both young and old LEGO Movie fans alike. It’ll definitely be a must-see show at the Park," commented Mark Germyn, General Manager, LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort.

The 4D short film will play several times a day at LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort’s LEGO Studio, housed in the Imagination area, with effects such as wind, water, fog and more bringing the action out of the screen and into the audience.

In conjunction with the launch of the new attraction, we will run an exclusive offer for Johoreans with 1 Free Child ticket for every 1 paid Adult (Buy 1, FREE 1). This offer will be available throughout the March and April. Our website is also offering a ‘Buy 1 ticket, get the second @ 50% off’ promotions so please visit our website www.legoland.my for more information.

-www.legoland.com.my

Taman tema animasi MAPS dibuka Julai

image: www.mapsperak.com

IPOH 28 Feb. – Taman tema animasi pertama Asia, Movie Animation Theme Park (MAPS) yang kini telah 80 peratus siap didirikan di Bandar Meru Raya di sini, bakal dibuka kepada orang ramai bermula Julai ini.

Ikon pelancongan baharu yang menawarkan lebih 40 tarikan utama itu dijangka terus menjadi pemangkin utama kepada perkembangan sektor pelancongan negeri ini selepas Perak berjaya mencatatkan kunjungan pelancong domestik tertinggi untuk tiga tahun berturut-turut.

Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Pelancongan, Kebudayaan, Kesenian, Multimedia dan Komunikasi negeri, Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohammed Radzi berkata, MAPS turut disasarkan untuk meningkatkan bilangan kunjungan pelawat antarabangsa ke negeri ini sekali gus merea­lisasi sasaran kunjungan 5.5 juta pelancong pada tahun ini.

“Dengan pembukaan MAPS ini secara tidak langsung menunjukkan komitmen kerajaan negeri dalam memperkembang industri seni kreatif serta pembangunan sumber manusia kerana sebanyak 23 rakyat kita sendiri terlibat dalam pengendalian aksi lagak negeri di sini.

“MAPS juga dijangka membawa kepada kesan kunjungan sebanyak 1.5 juta orang termasuk limpahan ekonomi di kawasan sekitar, justeru menjadi pemang­kin kepada perkembangan sektor pelancongan di sini,” katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian kepada pemberita selepas menghadiri program My Dream Carnival selain pelancaran promosi tiket MAPS merangkumi Perak Pass di pekarangan taman tema ber­kenaan di sini hari ini.

Perak Pass ialah tawaran harga tiket istimewa bagi kemasukan ke MAPS untuk tempoh setahun dengan harga RM180, khusus kepada anak kelahiran negeri ini melalui pembelian dengan pembuktian menggunakan kad pengenalan.

Majlis disempurnakan oleh Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Industri, Pelaburan dan Pembangunan Koridor negeri, Datuk Mohammad Zahir Abdul Khalid yang mewakili Menteri Besar, Datuk Seri Dr. Zambry Abd. Kadir.

Hadir sama Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif MAPS, Darren McLean dan Pengasasnya, Ramelle Ramli serta Ketua Eksekutif Kumpulan Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Perak (PKNP), Datuk Aminuddin Md. Desa merangkap Pengerusi MAPS.

MAPS yang bakal dibangunkan sepenuhnya dengan kos sebanyak RM450 juta berhampiran Plaza Tol Lebuh Raya Utara Selatan (PLUS) Ipoh Utara, menawarkan enam zon tema berbeza.

Zon itu meliputi tarikan animasi Dreamworks Adventure Zone (Mr.Peabody & Sherman, Megamind, The Croods, Casper The Friendly Ghost) serta persembahan animasi The Smurfs secara langsung yang pertama di Asia Tenggara.

-utusan online.

http://www.mapsperak.com/

Mareczko Takes First Win, Janse Van Rensburg Moves Into The Lead

REMBAU - In a very eventful stage 6 in the 21st Le Tour de Langkawi, Jakub Mareczko of Southeast claimed his first ever victory in the Malaysian event he’s taking part in for the second time while a mechanical incident with 6km to go deprived Colombia’s Miguel Angel Lopez from Astana of the overall lead. South Africa Reinardt Janse van Rensburg racing for Dimension Data took over although he was victim of a crash with 500 metres to go, which prevented him from contesting the stage victory he was looking for. Juraj Sagan of Tinkoff and Dylan Page from Roth finished second and third respectively in Rembau.

It was a very different stage from the scenarios Le Tour de Langkawi is used to. Songezo Jim (Dimension Data), Michael Gogl (Tinkoff), James Oram (One Pro Cycling), Mirco Maestri (Bardiani-CSF), Tim Scully (Drapac), Gong Hyo Suk (KSPO), Amirul Mazuki (Terengganu), joined by Giuseppe Fonzi (Southeast) formed a breakaway after ten kilometres of racing. They were about to get caught by the peloton led by Unitedhealthcare but Maestri and Gong insisted. They were reinforced by Adrien Niyonshuti (Dimension Data), Gogl again, Tanner Putt (Unitedhealthcare) and Julen Amezqueta (Southeast).

Putt rode away solo from that group but it was George Harper of One Pro Cycling who passed the last King of the Mountain sprint in first position with 8km to go at Bukit Miku. He was caught in the downhill where Lopez had a broken wheel with 6km to go. The race leader chased hard but couldn’t return to the peloton before the sprint. It was an acrobatic one with a sharp u-turn. Mareczko made the best of it.

“It’s been a bit difficult for me to take part in the sprints early on because there have been a few crashes, but today finally I managed to make it”, the Italian commented. “Today there were more KOM primes than usual. It wasn’t easy to hold the place but my teammates kept me in the main group. In the last few corners in the run in to the finish, I stayed in the first three so I was in the right position for sprinting.”

It was a day for new names to appear on the results sheet. “It was a very nervous sprint”, Page explained. “I use my brakes the best I could to get this result, which is a great one for me since I’m a neo pro and we’re a new team in this category of racing. I crashed on stage 2 and I’ve struggled to sleep since but I’m back! This race has a great organisation. It’s a super Tour!”

Sagan isn’t exactly a new name in cycling but Peter’s elder brother Juraj isn’t usually the one who gets on stage to receive the laurels. “I’m always helping others”, the Slovakian said. “But today I had the green light because our sprinter Michael Kolar had a flat tyre with 7km to go. This is my first international result as a pro. I’m quite happy with it.”

Andrea Guardini didn’t contest the sprint. “I was a bit full gas at 15km to go and I took the decision to leave this stage for rest and try to win another stage – tomorrow or the last stage”, the leader of the points competition said. This was harder than the other stages. It’s unfortunate than my team-mate Lopez lost the yellow jersey due to a mechanical but that’s part of cycling.”

It resulted in a change of leadership in the overall ranking. “I am really sorry for Lopez to lose the jersey in such a way”, Janse van Rensburg noted. “It is not the nicest way to take the jersey. I was looking forward to a bit more of a battle for the jersey, but I guess it’s cycling… But after the line I was a little bit disappointed because I missed my chance to go for the victory today. Some guys went straight into me in the corner, so I didn’t make the corner at 500m to go. My chain was off after that so I had to stop to put it back on.

“It is kind of bitter sweet today, but yeah … I take it as it comes. The race changes now completely for us. We are going to have to defend. The bunch is really getting aggressive now, so I think it’s going to be quite a big fight tomorrow, and there is quite a climb early on. So we are going to have to be top of our game coming out.”

Stage 7 from Seremban to Parit Sulong is the longest of the event with 202.3km.
-www.ltdl.com.my

Tourism to make RM103bil

PETALING JAYA: More foreign tourists are expected to visit Malaysia this year due to the weakened ringgit, with an estimated RM103bil in revenue to be generated for the country.

Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Mirza Mohammad Taiyab said the ringgit’s depreciation would entice foreign tourists to choose Malaysia for its affordability and value-for-money factor.

“They will also get to stay longer and experience more of Malaysia at the same cost in their respective currencies,” he added.

Tourism Malaysia, he said, was intensifying promotions on growing potential markets, although there weren’t any major tourism campaigns this year.

“With the emergence of the open skies policy in the Asean region in conjunction with the Asean Economic Community, we can expect more Asean tourists to come to Malaysia, and we are focusing on these markets,” Mirza said.

He said Tourism Malaysia’s promotional efforts would also concentrate on year-round markets with big populations such as China and India, and the high-income Middle East markets by “penetrating into the fast-growing second-tier cities there”.

Malaysia is expected to receive over 30.5 million tourists this year. Tourist numbers dropped 9.4% between January and June last year.

A total of 12.5 million foreign visitor arrivals were recorded in the first half of last year compared to 13.9 million in the same period in 2014.

Airlines on their part are providing competitive fares and accessibility.

Firefly chief executive officer Ignatius Ong said the airline would provide the right fares and attractive promotional activities.

AirAsia recently launched flights from Guangzhou to Langkawi and Ho Chi Minh City to Penang.

“We have also added direct connectivity from Yangon to Penang, which begins in March, and we hope these routes will promote more travel and trade between both Asean cities,” AirAsia chief executive officer Aireen Omar said recently.

However, Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) inbound vice-president Datuk K.L. Tan said the relevant authorities and operators should not rely solely on a weak currency to bring in tourists.

“The current currency depre-ciation is not unique to Malaysia as more than 120 currencies globally have fallen against the US dollar.

“We still need to market our country aggressively as our neighbours are doing exactly that. Indonesia has tripled its budget for Tourism Indonesia.

“So is Thailand, with its never-ending innovation in marketing the country.

“Singapore has ensured that its tourism spots and products are always refreshed,” Tan added.

MATTA, on its part, is introducing world-class tourism vehicles, especially mini-buses and tour vans, to ferry tourists.

“This will attract more high-spending tourists to the country and raise the image of Malaysia,” Tan said.

-thestar online.

Guardini Makes It Twenty At Most Prestigious Stage Finish Location

KUALA LUMPUR - Andrea Guardini became the first rider to reach the number of 20 stage victories at Le Tour de Langkawi – out of 37 in total in his six-year long pro career at the age of 26 – as he claimed the sprinters’ queen stage at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, making it four out of four on the race’s most prestigious venue. Coming third while stage 2 winner Andrea Palini finished second, South Africa’s Reinardt Janse van Rensburg who is second overall to Colombia’s Miguel Angel Lopez diminished his deficit from 29 to 23 seconds with three stages remaining.

It took 63 kilometres for the breakaway of the day to take shape. Beforehand, Guardini had to go for the first intermediate sprint against Janse van Rensburg to protect the overall lead of his team-mate Lopez. The Dimension Data fast man took two seconds there but sustained a flat tyre 2km before the second intermediate sprint, so Guardini could give way to the riders fighting for fifth place overall. Bardiani’s Luca Chirico and Jesper Hansen captured three and two seconds bonus respectively. Then it was time for breaking away.

Racing for the King of the Mountains competition, Wang Meiyin (Hengxiang) rode on the offensive again, and once again with Loh Sea Keong who was accompanied by another rider from Malaysia national team Aiman. Amirul Mazuki (Terengganu) and Kim Hyeonseok (KSPO) were the other members of the move before Carlos Manarelli (Funvic) rejoined them to compose a six-man front group. They had a maximum advantage of 3.20 at km 77.

In the finale, John Ebsen and Richard Handley, both from One Pro Cycling, came across to the two remaining leaders Loh and Amirul. They got reined in nearby the famous twin towers of Kuala Lumpur.

The inevitable bunch sprint was easily won by Guardini. “It’s a wonderful day for me and a perfect fourth win here on my favourite finishing line of Le Tour de Langkawi”, the Italian declared. “Every time I come to Kuala Lumpur, I win, it’s fantastic. With 20km to go, my mind was all set on this finish location. I could feel a lot of adrenaline in the run in. I knew exactly where I needed to pass my adversaries to outsprint them. We took control of the race and I had a really good sprint.”

“It was a very fast stage again”, Superman Lopez – his nickname – commented. “I’ve lost a little bit of time on GC but we caught the breakaway riders by profiting from the work of the other teams too. I’m happy to retain the yellow jersey and to realize that the flag of [the Federal Territory of] Kuala Lumpur is exactly the same as Colombia’s at the exception of the heraldry in the middle. I feel much welcome in Malaysia.”

Malaysia’s Adiq Hussainie Othman also retained the lead of the best Asian rider classification. “I was a bit nervous in the race today with [Masakazu] Ito and Zhao Jingbiao only at six and seven seconds”, the Terengganu rider from Dungun explained. “I had a big problem with my bicycle so I got it changed after 80km and it went well till the end.

Tomorrow it’s the most complicated day to defend the white jersey but I’ve reckoned the course at training and it should be no problem as long as there’s no technical issue. It was emotionally fabulous to hear people shouting my name loud on the road sides today. It felt like Adiq was everywhere!”

At the finishing line, Youth and Sport Minister YB Khairy Jamaluddin emphasized the great popular success of LTdL this year. Stage 6 will be held from Putrajaya, the home of the Malaysian government, to Rembau (147km) on a lumpy terrain likely to make the race very interesting.
-www.ltdl.com.my

Myanmar Tourist Arrival To Malaysia Likely To Bounce Back This Year

BANGKOK, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The number of Myanmar tourist arrivals to Malaysia is expected to bounce back this year after recording a decline in the previous year due to domestic political issues in that country.

Tourism Malaysia deputy director (Thailand and Myanmar) Mohamed Shahrir Hadzim said the decline was probably driven by Myanmar's historic general election last November.

"We expect Myanmar tourist arrivals in Malaysia to bounce back," he told Bernama.

Malaysia saw some 49,000 Myanmar tourists from January to September last year as compared to 95,352 in 2014, while 90,740 Myanmar tourists arrived in Malaysia in 2013.

On Nov 8, last year Myanmar held its first free general election in 25 years which saw the participation of Nobel Peace Laureate democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi for the first time.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) won a sweeping victory in the general election.

According to Mohamed Shahrir, Tourism Malaysia will work with travel agents in Myanmar to promote the country's tourism products besides carrying out ongoing campaigns through the local media.

He said campaigns to 'sell' Malaysia among the people of Myamnar was also conducted through the use of social media.

On the destination of choice for Myanmar tourists - many of whom arrived in groups - he said shopping centres and theme parks such as Genting, Sunway Lagoon were their main focus.

The good airline cooperation between the two countries through Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia and Myanmar Air also had a positive impact on the increase of the country's tourist arrivals to Malaysia, added Mohamed Shahrir.
-bernama.

2016 Formula 1 Malaysia Grand Prix ( 30 September - 2 October 2016 )

The 18th edition of the 2016 FORMULA 1 MALAYSIA GRAND PRIX is held from 30 September to 2 October 2016, the first time it has been moved in the F1 calendar for many years. Coming right after the Singapore F1 Grand Prix, the race offers a unique double F1 treat in Southeast Asia.

With an exciting cluster of events throughout the race week, including a demo run, auto carnival, fan engagement programmes with the drivers, and a spectacular post-race concert, the newly redefined F1 is not to be missed! 

Families looking forward to soaking up the thrills at Sepang can enjoy an improved family-friendly activities at the circuit with the ever popular X-track returning on popular demand, showcasing motorsports-themed thrills such as drifting, rallying, go-karting, ATV rides and more, for fans of all ages.

-www.ticketcharge.com.my

Government To Declare Kota Kinabalu Wetlands As Country's Seventh Ramsar Site

KOTA KINABALU, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The government will declare Kota Kinabalu Wetlands that is located in the heart of the city centre as the country's seventh Ramsar Site.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said his ministry was now looking into the matter before the 24-hectare mangrove forest conservation area be accorded the Ramsar site status.

"The Kota Kinabalu Wetlands meets all the criteria to be listed as the Ramsar Site. God willing, in the near future, the government will declare this area as the country's seventh Ramsar site. Maybe in the next three to four months," he said.

He said this to reporters after officiating the national-level World Wetlands Day 2016 and the 'A Guide to the Plants of Kota Kinabalu Wetlands' book launch, here Saturday.

Present were Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun and Sabah Wetlands Conservation Society (SWCS) president Datuk Zainie Abd Aucasa.

Wan Junaidi said the other Ramsar sites in the country are located at Tasek Bera in Pahang; Tanjung Piai, Pulau Kukup and Sungai Pulai in Johor; Kuching Wetland National Park, Sarawak; and Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands, Sabah.

In the meantime, Wan Junaidi urged all state governments to preserve and conserve their mangrove swamps, as the area was the habitat and breeding ground for various marine life.

At the event, Wan Junaidi also announced an allocation of RM750,000 to SWCS for the purpose of conservation activities in the Kota Kinabalu Wetlands.

The Sabah state government also contributed RM500,000 to SWCS.
-bernama.

Tourism Ministry Prepared To Cooperate On Direct Flights To Sabah, Sarawak

SIBU, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The Tourism and Culture Ministry is prepared to cooperate with any airlines worldwide for direct flights to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.

Its minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said this was to facilitate the tourists specifically from Europe, Japan, South Korea and China to visit Sabah and Sarawak in future.

"We will endeavour to boost cooperation with tourism agents to have charter flights directly to the two destinations which are attracting the interests of tourists in those countries," he said.

He said this at a media conference after the 'Titik Sentuhan' programme at the Sibu Methodist Children's Home in conjunction with the 2016 Chinese New Year Open House event at Dataran Bandar Sibu Saturday.

According to Nazri, China had a very high potential due to the robust economy of its people currently. The number of tourists from China was high from last December to February following the cold weather during the period.

"They found our weather very suitable for them. In addition, local residents talk in numerous Chinese dialects other than Mandarin. They also like the jungle landscape in Sabah and Sarawak, wildlife and beaches," he said.

Malaysia, he said, is the 11th most popular destination among foreign tourists last year and the number of tourists visiting Malaysia was expected to rise this year.

Earlier, he handed over angpows to 80 residents of the home, 40 children from Sibu Agape Centre and 40 orphans from the Sibu branch of the Sarawak Orphans Welfare Centre.
-bernama.

Hot Favourite Miguel Angel Lopez Meets Expectations In The Cameron Highlands

TANAH RATA, CAMERON HIGHLANDS - Astana managed to complete the double task of winning flat and mountain stages with Miguel Angel Lopez reaching Tanah Rata in a brilliant solo effort after Andrea Guardini opened the record book of the 2016 Le Tour de Langkawi in Baling on day 1. With an advantage of 29 seconds over South Africa’s Reinardt Janse van Rensburg from Dimension Data, the young Colombian has what it takes to become the overall winner of the 21st edition on March 2nd in Melaka.

After a breakaway attempt involving Wang Meiyin (Hangxiang) and Luca Chirico (Bardiani-CSF) that could mean a threat to the favourites, three riders went clear after 24 kilometres of racing: Ho Burr (HKSI), Shiki Kuroeda (Aisan) and Lukas Jaun (Roth). The peloton didn’t react until they reached a maximum advantage of 6.27 at km 45. Three riders formed a counter attack on the way up to the Cameron Highlands with the inevitable Wang being accompanied by Donaben Goh (Terengganu) and Loh Sea Keong (Malaysia). As the trio caught the first escapees, only Ho was able to handle their rhythm.

Wang, Loh, Ho and Goh passed the first category climb of Ringlet in that order. Wang and Goh were the last two breakaway riders caught by the main peloton in the final climb to Tanah Rata. With 5km to go, Lopez attacked in the steepest part of the climb. Johnny Clarke of Unitedhealthcare bridged the gap so the Colombian had to accelerate once again 3km before the line while his compatriot Daniel Jaramillo, also from Unitedhealthcare, chased him down but had to be content with the second place.

“It was a very fast stage”, Lopez commented. “I had to justify my team-mates’ dedication. With one rider less, it wasn’t easy to do so much work to make me win up here, but I attacked where I was told to do so. This is a very important victory for me. To start the season well will give me a lot of confidence and serenity for my further goals, the main one being the Vuelta a España.”

“Miguel Angel did a really good job and I’m happy for him because he’s a really good guy”, Guardini echoed after he retained the teal jersey of the points classification. “We wanted to play our cards as soon as possible in Le Tour de Langkawi, even though it’s hard to catch all the breakaways.”

For the first time, a Malaysian became the best Asian rider after the queen stage. “I thank my coach Adam Szabo, my team Terengganu, my family and my wife who came to watch me racing today”, said Adiq Hussainie Othman. “I wouldn’t be here without them. I’ve worked hard and lost a lot of weight to do well in this queen stage of Le Tour de Langkawi. I prefer long climbs like this one than steep ones like Genting. I did my best to stay in the first group. Now I’ll try to make history in becoming the first Malaysian to win the best Asian competition.”

Stage 5 will take the riders from Tapah to Kuala Lumpur with a detour in town under the iconic towers and the traditional finish at Dataran Merdeka. This is considered the sprinters’ queen stage. “It’s my favourite finish”, Guardini warned. “I’ve won it three times out of three. I want to make it four.”

-www.ltdl.com.my

Team Orelac Racing VerdNatura Looking Forward To Race 1

Round 1 – Preview

Zulfahmi Khairuddin #supportfahmi63
 “I like Phillip Island because it has a lot of fast corners and is a real ‘rider’s track’. The grip is good and it is fun to ride – as  long as you have a good set-up. It is not a hard track to learn, but you need to be brave and have the correct lines to go fast.  I don’t think that  it is very technical, but it is the kind of track where you need to have really good control of the bike –  especially in the fast corners. For me, it’s a real fun track to ride and the scenery is beautiful. I have only ridden there before  on a Moto3 bike, so I will have to learn  how to manage my Kawasaki. Once I do that, I think it will be very enjoyable and a lot  of fun.”

Nacho Calero 
 “I think Phillip Island is a very nice track because it has fast and slow corners and is great fun to ride. It has always liked me  and I feel comfortable racing there. I think the Kawasaki can work very well there and I am really looking forward to my first  time out there on this bike. For me, it is a technical track, because of the range of fast and slow corners, and you need a  good set-up so that you can find the best racing line. There are lots of places where you can make up time if you know what  you are doing, but if you don’t know what are doing, or do not have the right line, it’s also easy to lose time.”
 
Team Owner – Jose Calero
“Orelac Racing VerdNatura has history in the WSS class - for Nacho this will be the fourth year. It is a great class to be part of because it is challenging and very exciting to watch and, although it is very competitive and hard, it can also be very rewarding. The new rules make it more affordable and I think it is a great class for young riders to show their potential.
 
I think Orelac is the only Spanish team fielding a Spanish rider and that is a great honour as well as a great responsibility. Spanish riders are known worldwide for their speed and for winning championships, so the challenge is there for sure.
 
Orelac stopped directly participating at the end of 2012, but decided to enter again after the team Nacho signed on for at the start of 2015 was unable to continue the season after the first race in Phillip Island. That was really sort of an emergency situation in order to give Nacho the possibility to finish the season he started. Clearly the work is much more involving now because the team has grown exponentially in comparison to last season. I believe we are ready to approach the coming season properly but, in racing, the work never stops.
 
Orelac Racing started in 2008 with Nacho racing in the STK 600 with a small truck, one mechanic, me, and a lot of passion. The team is now much bigger and more challenging to manage, but we have very good people and so I feel very good about it - even though it can be difficult at times. If it were easy, everybody would do it! We know this season is definitely not going to be easy, but although the team is new at this level, the people behind it have a lot of experience.”
 
Team Manager – Giulio Bardi
“I think Nacho will do well this year. He is training hard and really focusing on his riding. Let’s not forget he was on the podium a few times in the STK 600 class, challenging for victory against some very fast guys. The transition to WSS wasn’t easy and a few injuries didn’t help. The Supersport class is a very tough class to be in, but he’s very committed and the first test in Jerez showed the work he’s done in the winter is paying off, so I expect good races from him.
 
Fahmi has come from Moto3, so he will have to adapt to WSS and get used to the extra weight and the handling and power of a much bigger bike. Having said that, I think he will adapt fast to all those differences. He is a very good and experienced rider and knows what it takes to be at the front. I believe he may surprise many people, given a bit of time. He will have to learn a lot of the tracks this year, but my experience tells me that if the rider feels comfortable on the bike and with the team, the learning process goes much quicker. The new time schedule on Friday (two one hour sessions) gives us a bit more time for the initial setup and I think we’ll be able to take advantage of that.
 
Everybody in Orelac Racing VerdNatura is working hard and really looking forward to this project. Hopefully we will start the year on a very positive note and go on from there.”
-http://sepangcircuit.com/index

Fokus sektor pelancongan

KUALA LUMPUR 26 Feb. - Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak berkata, sektor pelanco­ngan akan terus dikembangkan agar berupaya menjadi pemangkin pertumbuhan ekonomi negara.

Perdana Menteri memberitahu, langkah itu merupakan fokus utama kerajaan bagi memastikan pertumbuhan Keluaran Dalam Negara Kasar(KDNK) tahun ini mencapai unjuran empat hingga 4.5 peratus walaupun dalam keadaan ekonomi dunia tidak menentu.

Menurut beliau, jika kerajaan tidak mencari sumber pendapatan lain bagi menampung kekurangan pendapatan daripada hasil minyak, kesannya kepada rakyat adalah amat buruk.

“Dengan penurunan nilai mata wang ringgit, kos percutian di Malaysia menjadi lebih murah untuk pelancong asing. Ini membuka peluang perniagaan yang lebih besar buat kita.

“Apabila warga asing berbelanja di negara ini, ia merupakan satu bentuk pendapatan untuk ekonomi kita,” katanya melalui rakaman audio yang disiarkan dalam laman blog NajibRazak.com hari ini.

Najib menambah, bagi mencapai matlamat tersebut, kerajaan melancarkan promosi pakej percutian ke Malaysia dengan lebih giat di luar negara.

Beliau menjelaskan, antara fakta yang diketengahkan adalah kelebihan sektor ekopelancongan Malaysia yang terkenal di seluruh dunia.

“Kita mempunyai pantai yang terindah di dunia serta hutan hujan tropika yang kaya dengan spesies tumbuh-tumbuhan dan haiwan yang unik,” katanya.

-utusan online.

John Murphy Joins The Sprinters’ Club @ Le Tour De Langkawi 2016

KUALA KANGSAR - American cyclist John Murphy fended off the Italian sprinters on stage 3 of the 21st Le Tour de Langkawi as he proved himself faster and smarter than Francesco Chicchi, Jakub Mareczko and Andrea Guardini. The latter retained the yellow jersey of race leader ahead of the queen stage to the Cameron Highlands.

A leading trio opened the road for 100 out of 107km of racing from Kulim to Kuala Kangsar, formed of Donaben Goh (Terengganu), James Oram (One Pro Cycling) and Joao Pereira (Funvic-Soul-Carrefour). They reached a maximum lead of 3.40 after 29km. Oram was impressive as forged on in the finale with Goh on his wheel but the pair got reined in 2km before the finish.

The key of the sprint was a position on the right side of the road due some wind blowing from the left. Murphy was at the right place and claimed his first ever stage victory at Le Tour de Langkawi after beating last year’s young star Caleb Ewan in the conclusive stage of the Herald Sun Tour earlier this month in Australia.

“The Unitedhealthcare Pro Cycling team was phenomenal today”, Murphy emphasized. “The guys did an awesome job keeping me in pole position all day, keeping me hydrated in the heat, giving me mars bars… I was in a really good position in the last corner. I had a great lead out. It was a drag race, that’s what I like. It’s a wonderful finish for me and my team. I’m very happy to win here in Malaysia. I’m having an amazing time. It’s a beautiful country and we’ll keep on racing till the end.”

Guardini was happy to keep the yellow jersey but surprisingly, rather than expressing his disappointment, he was full of praise for the day’s winner. “In Unitedhealthcare, we’ve now found a team that can pull with us”, the Italian said. “They do a really good job for their sprinter. I quickly understood how difficult it would be to win the sprint when I launched mine. I started and stayed in the same position I was in.”

Chicchi and Mareczko looked more affected by the defeat. “I’m disappointed”, Chicchi commented. “I’ve had to launched from a bit too far out. Unitedhealthcare did a perfect job. They went to the right, protected by the barriers while I was in the middle of the road going slightly uphill and exposed to the side wind. I have lost because of my too strong desire to win.”

“I was in fourth position at the last curve then I got a bit lost in the sprint”, Mareczko described. “I recovered some positions and managed to pass Guardini but I couldn’t get better than third.”

Guardini and Murphy made themselves available for helping their respective Colombian team-mate in stage 4 from Ipoh to the Cameron Highlands. Miguel Angel Lopez will become Astana’s leader while Unitedhealthcare has more than one card to play with Colombia’s Daniel Jaramillo but also Janez Brajkovic and Johnny Clarke.

-www.ltdl.com.my

DRIVE M7 SIC Racing Team Ready To Take A Step Forward At Jerez

Jerez, Spain – Friday 26th February 2016

Circuit: Circuito de Jerez, Spain
Circuit Length: 4.4 km

The DRIVE M7 SIC Racing Team are raring to get back on track, as they prepare for the first official Moto3 pre-season test at Jerez in just five days’ time.

With three days scheduled between the 2nd and 4th March at the Spanish circuit, the Malaysian backed team are eager to get their 2016 campaign underway and get back in the mix amongst the Moto3 field.

Having completed two previous private tests at Valencia and Jerez earlier in February, which saw riders Jakub Kornfeil and Adam Norrodin board their new Honda NSF250RW machinery for the first time, the team are confident that they can continue to build on their progress and take the next step in terms of performance.

With the opening round at Qatar just three weeks away, both Kornfeil and Norrodin will be looking to find a good rhythm and improve their lap times at Jerez.

Johan Stigefelt – Team Manager

“We’re looking forward to these three days in Jerez; we were there just a couple of weeks ago so we already have some data to work from, as well as a much better understanding of the Honda . We still have a lot to learn on this bike and the riders need to take another step forward as well but I’m confident they will. They were very careful at Jerez last time because of the wind. Unfortunately we didn’t quite get the weather conditions we needed to really push.
We have three intense days ahead of us but I think when we come to Qatar for the next test, we will be 100% ready with this package, the bike and the riders as well. It’s only for Adam that everything is new, so we must be careful not to rush things for him. I’m happy with this new collaboration with Honda and our progress so far.”

#84 Jakub Kornfeil

“I’m feeling very positive about the first official Moto3 test. At our previous tests in Valencia and Jerez we spent a lot of time testing many things on the Honda, so now we have a base setting to work from and a much better understanding of the bike. I hope that we can continue to progress like this and really push for a good lap time. I’m really looking forward to this test because there will be many other Moto3 teams there, so we can start to see where we are amongst the field. I hope that the weather will be kind to us too so that we can really make the most of our time on track. The sessions at this test are quite short and are split into three per day but this is great practice for the race weekend. We have to work like each session is practice or qualifying and I’m happy for this.
We’re getting closer and closer to the first race, so now is the time to be a little faster; we really have to work on this at Jerez.”

#7 Adam Norrodin

“I’m very excited for the IRTA test in Jerez. This will be my first official time on track with other Moto3 riders. We tried many things at our last tests so we should improve at Jerez. We have already taken a good step and we’re not that far from our target, so I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do because I know we can do better. In Jerez we will now start to focus a little more on lap times. We have a good base set-up to work from, so now I need to concentrate on my riding and finding a good rhythm. As this is my first year in Moto3 we don’t want to change so many things on the bike, I just need to get used to the Factory Honda and build my confidence within the Championship; with this will come the speed.”

-SIC Racing Team facebook.

PelanconganKini supports DRIVE M7 SIC Racing Team.

Note: DRIVE M7 merchandises are available at http://www.m7shop.com/home.aspx

Drive/M7 x Nicky Hayden 69 merchandises also now available.

Two Hulu Perak Forest Sites Become Latest Attraction For Local Tourists

LENGGONG, Feb 26 (Bernama) -- Two recreational forest destinations in Hulu Perak have become popular attractions to domestic tourists visiting the state.

State Tourism, Arts, Culture, Communications and Multimedia Committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohammed Radzi said the two spots, the Kekabu Falls and Pulau Mata Kail were known for their pristine forest environment.

She said both attractions were among 16 recreational forest areas found in the state.

"With the Lenggong Valley declared as a world heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the area could be seeing more local and foreign visitors," she said at a press conference at the Kekabu Waterfall here Friday.

She told reporters after officiating a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) exercise to clean up the waterfall area in conjunction with the five-day visit to Hulu Perak district by the Menteri Besar.

Apart from that, Nolee Ashilin said the state government was also furnishing documents to get the Royal Belum Forest recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site.

"We are preparing documents to be submitted to the UNESCO Committee by the end of this year. The Royal Belum Forest has become a major attraction as the natural forest is renowned for attractive flora and fauna," she said.

She said the Hulu Perak district had various facilities including hotels and homestays which were popular with tourists who like the natural environment.

In this regard, Nolee Ashilin said the local communities could derive from economic benefits if they help to conserve the natural beauty of their areas to attract more tourists.
-bernama.

Hari Kraf Kebangsaan 2016 @ Kompleks Kraf Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Conlay ( 24 Februari - 6 Mac 2016 )

Kuala Lumpur, 25 Febuari 2016 - Kraftangan Malaysia agensi di bawah Kementerian Pelancongan dan Kebudayaan Malaysia hari ini mengadakan Majlis Perasmian Hari Kraf Kebangsaan 2016 kali ke- 14 bertempat di Kompleks Kraf Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Conlay. Majlis disempurnakan oleh Yang Amat Berbahagia Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor, Isteri Perdana Menteri Malaysia.

Hadir sama ialah Yang Berhormat Dato' Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Tan Sri Abdul Aziz, Menteri Pelancongan dan Kebudayaan Malaysia.

Sambutan Hari Kraf Kebangsaan diadakan bertujuan untuk memberi pengiktirafan kepada usahawan kraf tempatan di atas usaha serta komitmen mereka dalam membangun dah mengembangkan industri kraf dan seterusnya menyumbang kepada ekonomi negara.

Hari Kraf Kebangsaan 2016 kali ke-14 bermula 24 Febuari hingga 6 Mac 2016 dari jam 10.00 pagi hingga 10.00 malam bertempat di Kompleks Kraf Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Conlay.

-MOTAC facebook.