Peter Sagan won stage 4 of the 2014 Tour of Oman – after beating Vincenzo Nibali and Rigoberto Uran in a sprint finish in Boshar today.
The three riders successfully escaped after Chris Froome’s attack on the final climb of Bousher Alamrat was neutralized by the field. At that point, Sagan, Nibali and Uran managed to ride clear in the closing kilometers – building up a 15 second gap over the chase.
With 3 kilometers remaining, the trio increased their lead to 20 seconds. And, from there, the race came down to a three man race to the finish.
How it Happened
Today’s stage unfolded with an early breakaway group containing Evan Huffman, Yaroslav Popovych, Greg Van Avermaet and Jelle Wallays – who at one point established a lead in excess of six minutes over the peloton. However, as the race entered the finishing circuit, which featured four climbs of Bousher Alamrat, the escapee’s lead began to dwindle rapidly.
Indeed, as the quartet approached the final climb, Van Avermaet emerged as the sole survivor, with only a 55 second gap between him and the ensuing peloton – which was being led by Team Sky.
The final ascent(s), saw many big name riders such as Andy Schleck and Tom Boonen fall victim to the challenging climbs. And, as the route kicked up one last time, Froome, followed by Uran tried to ride clear over the summit. However, the two riders were quickly reeled in by the chase during the descent.
The results of today’s stage, moved Sagan, Uran and Nibali up into the top three spots of the overall general classification.
Results:
1. Peter Sagan
2. Rigoberto Uran
3. Vincenzo Nibali
4. Daryl Impey
5. Tony Gallopin
General classification:
4. Tony Gallopin
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