After he came close to victory in Quriyat and Al Hamra, Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) ended the longest stage of this year’s Tour of Oman with his arms aloft in triumph.
Stage 4, a 204.9km climb from Izki through Muscat to Yeti Hills, had an explosive finale in store for the peloton with a series of ascents in the last 10km.
Pascal Ackermann, Ulissi’s teammate with UAE Team Emirates, went on the move on the up and down sections before he was caught with 2km to go when Ivan Cobo (Kern Pharma) launched a counter attack on the final ascent but was caught right at the summit with less than 1km remaining.
It was then time for the Italian puncheur Ulissito show his power in the final sprint and take victory ahead of Axel Zingle (Cofidis) and Ide Schelling (BORA-Hansgrohe), while Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar Team) retained the leader’s red jersey.
After a week of racing, the final challenge awaits the riders today: a mighty climb up Jabal Al Akhdar, where the overall winner of the Tour of Oman will be crowned.
Norway’s Fredrik Dversnes (Uno-X Pro Cycling) won ‘Most Active Rider’ today, breaking Jeroen Meijers’ domination of the category. Matteo Jorgenson won ‘Best Young Rider’ for the day after maintaining his overall lead of the Tour of Oman, while Diego Ulissiclaimed the ‘Individual Points’ award for his stage victory.
Dversnes said, “We have a good fight today, and I knew it would be a hard day to take the Red Jersey but with help from my teammates I was able to. It was a hard stage and a long stage, the longest of the Tour of Oman, but it was a stage I was looking forward to. My goal for this Tour was to go for a win, and I decided to go for it a bit earlier today. We will try to defend the jersey tomorrow and aim for the sprints.”
The final stage on 15th February, will finally see the riders reach the Green Mountain – Jabal Al Akhdar.
The 152.2km course begins in Samail and follows the mountain range through the villages of Sayja and Manal, before turning off at Al Afiah towards Wadi Mahram, Wadi Squt and Wadi Adam.
The peloton will then turn inland and circle the town of Izki before the final approach at Birkat Al Mouz and the finishing line in Jabal Al Akhdar.
Fans from all around the world can follow the action and enjoy the best images of the Tour of Oman. All the action and the best images will also be available on social media with live coverage on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and updates on Daily Motion. Footage of the races isalso available in 190 territories through 50 TV/Digital broadcasters with daily highlights and full race highlights.
The Tour of Oman 2023 is organised by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, Muscat Municipality and the Oman Cycling Association, and supported by JETOUR, Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC, and Badr Al Samaa Hospital.
Source: Times of Oman