UPDATES WITH RESULTS OF FIRST STAGE; REVISES INTRO, HEADLINE, DECK; EDITS THROUGHOUT
By Ali Balli, Durmus Genc and Emrah Oktay
MUGLA, Turkiye (AA) – Australia's Caleb Ewan won the first stage of the 57th Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkiye on Sunday.
Ewan, a member of the Belgian team Lotto Soudal, finished in 4 hours, 38 minutes and 5 seconds to claim his third stage win at the Tour of Turkiye.
Jasper Philipsen of Belgian team Alpecin-Fenix came in second and Kaden Groves of Australia’s BikeExchange-Jayco was third, according to the provisional results.
“Today was a first success but there will be plenty of opportunities to come. We knew we had to be in front during the fast final kilometers and so we did,” Ewan said.
“The guys did an amazing job to drop me off exactly where I needed to be. This gives me a lot of confidence.”
Multiple accidents occurred during the first stage, including a serious crash for Spanish team Equipo Kern Pharma’s Danny van der Tuuk, who had to be rushed to a hospital.
A total of 167 racers from 25 teams competed in the first stage of what is the world’s only intercontinental cycling competition.
They covered 207 kilometers (129 miles) from the Aegean tourism hub of Bodrum in Mugla province to the beach resort town of Kusadasi in neighboring Aydin province, a scenic route in a region known for its rich history and mesmerizing natural beauty.
The second stage will begin at 10.40 local time (0740GMT) on Monday, a route of 158.4 kilometers (98.4 miles) from the ancient city of Ephesus to the Aegean coastal town of Alacati.
The eight-stage Tour of Turkiye spans a total distance of 1,303 kilometers (810 miles) and will culminate in the country’s most iconic city Istanbul on April 17.
The racers will change continents at three different points – from Asia to Europe on the sixth day, returning to Istanbul’s Asian side in the latter stages and then crossing to the metropolis’ European part again.
Six WorldTour teams are in the hunt for the title this year, up from three in the previous edition, along with 12 professional and seven continental teams.
The race is being broadcast live on TRT Spor Yildiz and Eurosport, while Anadolu Agency is among the sponsors of the prestigious global event.
*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas