Muscat: The eighth edition of Tour of Oman heated up on Wednesday after its kick off on Tuesday.
The highly-anticipated six-stage race covers a distance of 900km with 144 cyclists from around the world participating.
Two Arab teams from Abu Dhabi and Bahrain are among the competitors.
Norway’s Alexander Kristoff dominated the sprint finish to take the leader’s jersey following Tuesday’s opening stage of the Tour of Oman.
The Katusha rider beat Italians Kristian Sbaragli and Sonny Colbrelli at the end of the 176.5km stage around Muscat.
Cobbled classics specialist Tom Boonen was unable to fight for victory after being brought down in a mass crash some 700 metres from the line.
Boonen finished the race but with a torn jersey and bloodied back and elbow.
Kristoff will wear the leader’s red jersey on Wednesday’s second stage over 145km from Nakhal to Al Bustan that should favour one-day specialists like Boonen.
The first stage covered a distance of 176km and began at Al Sawadi beach of Barka province, 60km away from the capital Muscat.
The second stage of the race on Wednesday covers a distance of 146.5km from Nakhal Fort until the park near Bandar Al Rouda.
The third stage on Thursday covers a distance of 162km from the Sultan Cultural Centre at Sultan Qaboos University till Aqabat Quriyat.
The fourth stage on Friday covers a distance of 119.5km from Al Sifah Resort and finishes in front of the Ministry of Tourism.
The fifth stage on Saturday covers a distance of 165km from Sultan Qaboos Mosque in Sumail, and finishes at Jabal Al Akhdar road.
The final stage on Sunday covers a distance of 130.5km from the Wave Project and finishes at Muttrah corniche of the capital Muscat.
