Kristoff claims second stage win at Oman

Muscat : Sonny Colbrelli of Bahrain-Merida claimed second spot in the tightly competed fourth stage of the 2017 Tour of Oman as he managed to give the stage winner Norway’s Alexander Kristoff a run for his money over three tough climbs in the final 45km of the 118km stage that finished in Muscat. Belgian Ben Hermans retained the overall leader’s jersey. 

This was Kristoff’s second stage win as he also managed to out-sprint Olympic champion Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) of Belgium who finished third. 

The Norwegian rider had already proved that he was the fastest sprinter in the race with his win on stage one.

The climbs close to the finish slimmed down the field significantly, and the final ascent saw an elite group of 15 riders go off the front, including big names such as Fabio Aru (Astana) and Romain Bardet (Ag2r La Mondiale). 

Overall leader Ben Hermans (BMC Racing) finished safely in the front group to hold on to his red jersey.

Stage four of the Tour of Oman saw the largest break of the race with nine riders going clear: Tanel Kangert (Astana), Axel Domont (Ag2r La Mondiale), Stefan Küng (BMC Racing), Anass Ait El Abdia (UAE Abu Dhabi), Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors), Stefan Denifl (Aqua Blue Sport), Mike Teunissen (Team Sunweb), Fabien Doubey (Wanty-Groupe Gobert), and Daniel Eaton (UnitedHealthcare).

Saturday’s Queen stage will likely be decisive with its finish on The Green Mountain, a 5.7km climb with an average 10.5 percent gradient.