Kooij fifth in first stage of Gree-Tour of Guangxi
Olav Kooij has finished fifth in the first stage of the Gree-Tour of Guangxi. The young Dutchman of Team Jumbo-Visma just missed out on a podium place in the bunch sprint, which was won by Elia Viviani.
The first stage of the Chinese stage race, with the start and finish in Beihai, started quietly. After a few kilometres, the traditional early breakaway appeared. Four riders opened up a gap of over a minute and a half but were caught fifteen kilometres from the finish. In the final, Team Jumbo-Visma rode up front, putting Kooij in a good position. The young sprinter was in the lead but missed out on a podium place.
"Unfortunately, Olav soon realised he didn't have the legs to win."
"It was hot, 33 degrees", sports director Maarten Wynants said about the first stage. "All the riders had to get used to it. We let the other teams control the race until the final when we jumped in. The Van Dijke brothers set up the sprint for Olav. Unfortunately, he soon realised he didn't have the legs to win."
"Tomorrow we have another chance", Wynants said, looking ahead. "It will be a similar stage to today. The aim is to put Olav in a good position for the finale and get him back in contention for the stage win."
