Rein Taaramäe won stage 3 of this year’s Tour of Turkey atop a steep mountain finish in Elmali today – to claim the overall race lead from Mark Cavendish.
The Estonian rider attacked in the final 3 kilometers, along with the British rider Adam Yates. From there, the duo worked in unison, until Taaramäe succeeded in distancing himself from Yates in the final few hundred meters to win the stage by 6 seconds over his companion.
Meanwhile, Romain Hardy finished third – 38 seconds back ahead a small group of chasers.
Tomorrow’s 132 kilometer stage from Fethiye to Marmaris will again feature a challenging day in the hills – with a late climb before a descent to the finish.
“ It was really hard during the mountains here but I didn’t know why. I later found out that I had asthma after the race because I had symptoms of not being able to breath. I took all the medications but it didn’t help my breathing. Doctors then found out, seven weeks ago, that I had an obstruction of the larynx and they did an operation in Estonia. I started racing 10 days ago, so this result is pretty good for me,” Taaramäe explained after his victory.
“I hope that I am back. This was a very good race for me to start. I didn’t think that I can win here because it is so early after my operation but it’s confirmation that my operation was good.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOuwQ_dQGlY
Stage 3 Results
EST 1 TAARAMAE, Rein (COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS) 5:40:31 GBR 2 YATES, Adam (ORICA GreenEDGE) + 6 FRA 3 HARDY, Romain (COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS) + 38 ERI 4 KUDUS GHEBREMEDHIN, Merhawi (MTN – QHUBEKA) ITA 5 REBELLIN, Davide (CCC POLSAT POLKOWICE) ESP 6 SANCHEZ GIL, Luis Leon (CAJA RURAL – SEGUROS RGA) AUS 7 HANSEN, Adam (LOTTO BELISOL) + 43 CRO 8 DURASEK, Kristijan (LAMPRE – MERIDA) + 44 ESP 9 COBO ACEBO, Juan Jose (TORKU SEKERSPOR) BRA 10 ANDRIATO, Rafael (NERI SOTTOLI)
General Classification after Stage 3 EST 1 TAARAMAE, Rein (COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS) 12:46:41 GBR 2 YATES, Adam (ORICA GreenEDGE) + 6 FRA 3 HARDY, Romain (COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS) + 38
About the TUR
The Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey (TUR) started in 1963 with the name of "Marmara Tour", gained international status in 1965 for the first time and was taken under the auspices of Presidential authority in 1966. On its 50th anniversary the competition will be held on April 27-May 4, 2014 in 8 stages starting from Alanya, proceeding along the Mediterranean and Aegean coasts. Istanbul will be home to the spectacular finish.
The world’s sole "transcontinental cycling tour" will witness the high-level competition of world-renowned athletes and teams. The slogan this year is "50 Years of Cycling Passion". The Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey which has been reaching a wide access network throughout the world via live and recorded broadcasts by means of prestigious national and international channels in more than 150 countries since 2008, stands out as a global organization that serves as a model of Turkey’s sports organization experience. With its deep-rooted history, its contributions to the development of the sport of cycling and the promotion of tourism in Turkey through TV broadcasts, the organization continues to be a success story for our country.
Stages
Leader Jerseys
Leader jerseys find their owners according to the scores gained at the premium gates through each stages. The athlete at the first rank in leader jerseys classification at the end of every stage begins the next stage with the leader jersey and aims to keep the jersey till the end of the TUR.
Turquoise Jersey
Turkish blue Turquoise which is derived from the pronunciation of the word Turk in French and which is the colour of the Mediterranean and Aegean coasts is also the colour of the Leader jersey as the institutional colour of the TUR.
White Jersey
White Jersey with the premium gates through which historical and natural richness of Turkey is carried to the screens as Beauties of Turkey are being highlighted are carried to the podium on the leader of the premium gates at the end of every stage.
Red Jersey
Red Jersey with the best climber premium gates with which the King of the Mountains is determined by the climbing performance of the riders.
Green Jersey
Green Jersey with the sprint gates which witness the struggle among the strongest sprinters.
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