China is hosting the final WorldTour stage race of the season. The seventh edition of the Tour of Guangxi opened with a flat stage starting and finishing in Chongzuo, near the Chinese-Vietnamese border. Fabio Jakobsen made his WorldTour debut in Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s yellow-and-black colors.  

Shortly after the start, Patrick Gamper, Fredrik Dversnes, and Neilson Powless launched an attack. The trio animated what was otherwise an uneventful stage. Their advantage never grew much beyond two minutes. With a bunch sprint in mind, the peloton kept the breakaway riders within striking distance throughout the stage.  

The breakaway was eventually caught just under 10 kilometers from the finish. As expected, the stage came down to a bunch sprint on the streets of Chongzuo. After a hectic finale, Jakobsen finished 16th. Magnier claimed the first stage victory.  

“We didn’t get the result we were hoping for today, but it was great to see everyone giving it their all,” sports director Gaëtan Pons said afterward. “The guys did a great job in the finale, positioning Fabio well for the sprint. Unfortunately, Fabio got boxed in during the closing stages and couldn’t contest the sprint. Fabio and his teammates made their presence felt in the finale. That gives us confidence heading into the upcoming sprints.”  

“We’ll also be focusing on the general classification over the coming week,” Pons added. “Louis Barré returned to competition in Lombardy with a good feeling. He has already shown what he’s capable of earlier this season. We hope he can contend for a strong overall result. There are still several tough stages to come on the final weekend.”