Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates) is the first rider in the red leader’s jersey in this year’s Tour of Guangxi after winning the opening stage ahead of Pascal Ackermann (BORA-hansgrohe) and Matteo Trentin (Mitchelton-SCOTT).
A strong trio of Mikkel Honoré (Deceuninck - Quick-Step), Ryan Mullen (Trek-Segafredo) and Josef Černý (CCC Team) opened up a gap early in stage but was ultimately reeled back in with 30 km to go. From here on, several riders tried to get away but despite a few promising attempts, it all came back together for the expected bunch sprint in Beihai.
The teams of the fast men fought hard to put their sprinter in the best possible position. Mitchelton-SCOTT was the first team to hit out, setting up Trentin. However, Ackermann got the jump on the Italian as he seemed to power to what looked like a sure win. On the very final meters though, Gaviria managed to pass the German on the inside and take the victory with well-timed bike-throw on the line.
Tomorrow, another interesting stage awaits the riders in Tour of Guangxi. You can follow all the action as Velon is broadcasting the race live on its social media channels. For more info, click here.