KUALA LUMPUR: For now, the National Sports Council (NSC) have no plans to make monkeypox (mpox) testing compulsory for teams coming to Malaysia to compete in Petronas Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) on Sep 29-Oct 6.
NSC director general Abdul Rashid Yaakub, however, said they are constantly monitoring the situation and are prepared to adhere to any instructions from the Health Ministry regarding the matter.
NSC are the organisers of the UCI ProSeries race.
"We are aware of what is happening with mpox and have medical teams who are monitoring the situation. We will take action if we need to," said Rashid recently.
"So far we have no plans to make this (mpox testing) compulsory as it would become a constraint to the teams or the tourists who intend to come here for the race.
"This is of course unless there are new rules or conditions (for entry) set by the Health Ministry. So far there are none."
Mpox has been declared an international health emergency by the World Health Organisation.
Screening for symptoms, via temperature and visual inspection, has already been enforced at all major entry points to the country.
A total of 22 teams from the United States, Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Kazakhstan, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia will be competing in LTdL this year.
LTdL is the nation's most prestigious cycling tour and has been held every year since 1996 except for 2021 when the race was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic