Pro Cycling Race Report of April, 2024

In the month of April, all six of our sponsored UCI Continental pro cycling teams participated in races. The following is a summary of their top performances.

Tour of Turkey

In this year’s Tour of Turkey, also known as the Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkiye, both China Glory – Mentech and EQ Mazowsze Serce Polski competed. This race was unfortunately cut short to seven days rather than the initially planned eight due to poor weather conditions. The race started in the city of Antalya and finished in the capital city of Istanbul

In this Pro.2 race, riders from both teams secured good results. On stage 2, from Kemer to Kaş, Xianjing Lyu got 7^th overall in a sprint finish after 190.6km of riding and 2917 meters of climbing. Rider Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg managed to get 6^th on stage 5 from Rodrum to Kuşadasi, in another sprint.

From EQ Mazowsze Serce Polski, rider Marcin Budziński got 8^th on stage seven from Çeşme to İzmir, and got 13^th in the overall GC getting 20 UCI points. Fellow rider Michał Pomorski also got 6^th in the KOM category.

Tour of Thailand

Also known as the Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s Cup Tour of Thailand, the Tour of Thailand was a six-stage race that took place from April 1^st to the 6^th. The race started in Phitsanulok and finished in Si Thep Historical Park.  Both China Glory – Mentech and 7Eleven Cliqq Roadbike Philippines participated.

On stage 1, a flat course from Phitssanulok to Sukhothai Historical Park, China Glory’s Zhen Li got 8^th in the sprint, closely followed by fellow teammate Lucas de Rossi. Later on stage 4, a mountain stage  with 1539 meters of climbing from Phitsanulok to Phetchabun, De Rossi, Haoyu Su, and Changsheng Sun got 4^th, 5^th, and 8^th respectively in small spring group. The next day, on stage 5, a flat stage from Phitsanulok to Phichit, rider Yutao Shen got a respectable 2^nd place. Li Zhen managed get get another top result, getting 6^th on stage 6 from Phichit to Si Thep Historical Park. De Rossi managed 12^th in the overall GC.

Tour of Mersin

Just like in the tour of Turkey, both China Glory – Mentech and EQ Mazowsze Serce Polski went head to head. This Turkish stage race began in Anamur on April 4^th and finished in Mersin on the 7^th. On the first stage from Anamur to Yanışlı, taking place on April 4^th, Polish rider Marcin Budziński managed to get 2^nd, edging out two riders from China Glory Mentech, Xiangjing Lyu and Willie Smit, who got 3^rd and 4^th respectively.

Budziński continued his rain be getting an impressive 5^th on the second stage, from Gülnar to Mersin (Soli Pompeipolis),and 3^rd on stage 3, from Tarsus to Ayvagediği, which ended in a mountaintop finish, where Lyu finished in 4^th, just seconds behind after 95kim of riding and 3259 meters of climbing.Two more riders from the Polish team, Norbert Banaszek and Tobiasz Pawlak got 2^nd and 4^th in the final stage, with rider Reinhardt Janse van Rensburg getting 8^th.

Budziński from EQ Mazowsze Serce Polski got 1^st in the overall GC, scoring 40 UCI points. Lyu and Smit from China Glory – Mentech got 5^th and 6^th respectively, accumulating 35 UCI points. Mazowsze Serce Polski was the highest ranked team, gaining 2:19 overall 2nd, Bike Aid, and 4:32 over China Glory – Mentech.

Circuit des Ardennes April 4-7

Sponsored team, Sabgal – Anicolor participated in the 50^th Circuit des Ardennes. The team’s new rider, Mathias Bregnhoj managed second overall on stage 2 from Auvillers-les-Forges to Hardoncelle, 10^th on stage 3 from Charleville-Mézières to Aiglemont, 11^th on stage 4 in Sedan, securing 2^nd place in the overall GC and scoring 30 UCI points for the team

Belgrade Banjaluka

This year’s Belgrade Banjaluka took place from the 17^th to the 20^th of April.Our sponsored Slovenian team, Sava Kranj Cycling, started doing more racing outside of Slovenia and took the race by storm. Rider Mihael Stajnar 4^th on Stage 1, a flat course from Doboj to Banjaluka. He then got 2^nd on stage 3, from Višegrad to Jahorina. He magaged to get 3^rd overall, with fellow rider Jaka Marolt getting 7th, scoring 30 UCI points for the team.

Oceania Continental Championships ME – ITT

Benjamin Dyball from the Japanese team, Victoire Hiroshima, got 3^rd overall in this year’s Oceania Continental Championships ME – ITT. It was a 20.2km time trial that he finished in just 25:57with an average speed of 46.615kph. He scored 40 UCI points.

Oceania Continental Championships ME – Road Race (CC)

Just like in the ITT race, Benjamin Dyballof Victoire Hiroshima performed well, getting 12^th overall. scoring 35 UCI points. The race consisted of 2271 meters of climbing over 139.5km. Riders rode up Mount Crosby a total of five times.