News: Tour of Oman Stage 1

Alexander Kristoff (Team Katusha Alpecin) has won stage 1 of the 8th Tour of Oman

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News: Tour of Oman Stage 1

Team Katusha Alpecin’s Alexander Kristoff wins stage 1 in the Tour of Oman.

Photo: © Tim De Waele

Alexander Kristoff (Team Katusha Alpecin) has won stage 1 of the 8th Tour of Oman with finish at the Naseem Park not far away from country capital Muscat. Kristoff repeated his 2016 win at the same finish location and has now already five Oman stage wins on his palmares.

In the final sprint KATUSHA ALPECIN’s top sprinter was faster than Italians Kristian Sbaragli (Dimension Data) and Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrein – Merida).

Kristoff explained afterwards “Of course, all in the peloton looked at us, as we were the favorites with me as one of the best sprinters, so we had to take control of the race from the beginning. Quick -Step Floors helped and later on also Sunweb”.

“Our team did an amazing job. In the end they all contributed for the lead-out. We knew the finish from last year and knew that we had to come to the front a little bit late, especially because of the straight road and the head wind. We waited in the bunch quite a long time”.

“Just in the end, with 300 meters to go, we hit the front. It was still tough with the head wind, but our lead-out was perfect. Marco Haller and Michael Mørkøv were the last guys to bring me to the ideal position but also Nils Politt helped a lot. I am proud of this team. Already in Bessèges we showed to have a good group. This is a great feeling. I hope we can continue this way” Kristoff said finally.

The Stage

Stage 1 of the Tour of Oman included a short categorized climb and a long descent, so everyone was expecting a bunch sprint to kick-off the eighth edition of the Middle East. A five-man escape snapped the elastic early and managed to build a four-minute advantage, which began to drop once Quick-Step Floors and Katusha hit the front of the peloton.

The catch was made inside the final 10 kilometers, but due to the strong headwind and the jostling for position, a crash occurred, and Tom Boonen (Quickstep) hit the deck, with 700 meters to go, just as he was preparing for the sprint. Fortunately, the seven-time Monument winner remounted and crossed the finish line, before traveling to the hotel with the team. Despite some bruises and abrasions, Boonen – a stage winner this season at the Vuelta a San Juan – will start stage 2 of the Tour of Oman, which is set to conclude in Al Bustan.

Tomorrow will be held stage 2 of the Tour of Oman – 145,5 km from Nakhal to Al Bustan.

… continued after advert with the result

2016_ShuttVeloRapideAdvert
1. Alexander Kristoff, Team Katusha – Alpecin
2. Kristian Sbaragli, Dimension Data
3. SonnyColbrelli, Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team
4. Lasse Norman Hansen, Aqua Blue Sport
5. Lucas Sebastian Haedo, UnitedHealthcare

15. Adam Blythe, Aqua Blue Sport
25. Fabio Aru, Astana Pro Team
27. Rui Costa, UAE Abu Dhabi
63. Greg Van Avermaet, BMC Racing
82. Daniel Pearson, Aqua Blue Sport
97. Andy Fenn, Aqua Blue Sport
102. Mark Christian, Aqua Blue Sport
113. Matt Brammeier, Aqua Blue Sport
132. Tom Boonen, Quick-Step Floors

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