By Anadolu Agency
October 15, 2023 8:21 amIZMIR, Türkiye
Jay Vine claimed the seventh stage in the 58th Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye as Alexey Lutsenko retained the overall lead on Saturday.
The 27-year-old from the UAE Team Emirates squad came first in 159.8 kilometers (98 miles) with a time of three hours, 36 minutes, and 51 seconds ahead of Jasper Philipsen from Alpecin-Deceuninck and Astana Qazaqstan Team’s Cees Bol.
In the post-stage press conference, Vine said that the red jersey is not the one he was hoping to take away from this race but it is still a satisfaction.
“I came to this race with the aim of doing more GC-type of things. I had a few hiccups, especially on stage three and again yesterday. But the team wanted to get a win here very much. With one day left in the season now, it’s nice to finally tick that box off for the team,” Vine added.
The Selcuk-Manisa-Izmir track hosted 135 athletes from 24 teams, with Lutsenko from Astana Qazaqstan Team retaining the turquoise jersey as general classification leader.
Philipsen, 25, reclaimed the green jersey with a second-place finish from Luca Colnaghi of the Green Project-Bardianicsf-Faizine Team.
Meanwhile, the green jersey is awarded to the best sprinter in the Tour of Türkiye.
The grand final of the eight-day race in Istanbul will kick off in front of the Hagia Sophia Mosque.
It will reach Asia through the Eurasia tunnel, pass through the 15 July Martyrs Bridge, and reach the historical peninsula to Europe again for a magnificent finish at the Sultanahmet Square.
Starting from the Alanya district of Antalya on Sunday and ending in Istanbul on Oct. 15, the cyclists will travel 1,235 km (767 mi) in the Turkish Riviera.
The Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye, which is the only intercontinental bicycle tour in the world, will host four world tour teams, seven professional, 12 continental, and one national team.
The Turkish Cycling Federation has been organizing the tour, earlier known as the Marmara Tour, since 1963. It gained international status in 1965 and was taken under presidential authority in 1966.
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