Tour of Hainan. Smirnov takes final stage, Mulubrhan is second in GC
2.Pro Chinese stage race Tour of Hainan concluded today with a hilly 203-km-long stage. Astana Qazaqstan Team trainee Ivan Smirnov secured a sprint victory. Team leader Henok Mulubrhan was active throughout the stage, winning an intermediate sprint and, thanks to the bonus seconds, claimed second place overall in the general classification.
“Our main objective today was to try to move Henok Mulubrhan up to second place in the overall standings. We tackled the first climb at a high pace, brought Henok to the front, and then worked as a team to help him to win the intermediate sprint, where he gained 3 seconds. After that, we ceded the lead positions in the peloton to the leading team to conserve energy for the final – to bring Henok safely to the finish and possibly fight for the stage win in the sprint. The team did an excellent job today; all my teammates gave 100%, and I’m glad I could finish this work with a victorious sprint. I’m very happy with this success; I wanted to win in this race, and on the last day, I managed to do it – mission accomplished”, – said Ivan Smirnov.
“We had a good week here at the Tour of Hainan, which we finished quite successfully – Ivan won a stage, and I managed to take second place overall. From the start, we set a very high pace and completely controlled the race to contest the intermediate sprint. Thanks to the team’s efforts, everything went as planned; Ivan and Alessandro perfectly led me out, I won three seconds, and that was enough to secure second place. We aimed for the final podium in this race, and I’m grateful to the team for their excellent support throughout the week, and I’m very happy that everything worked out well”, – said Henok Mulubrhan.
“We invented a good plan for today’s stage. We understood that competing for the overall win would be very difficult, so we focused on securing second place, which was quite realistic. We had to take full control of the race from the start and not let the breakaway get away before the first intermediate. It wasn’t easy, but we managed it. On the climb, we increased the pace, dropped many rivals, and then Ivan Smirnov and Alessandro Romele helped Henok Mulubrhan to get the best position in the intermediate sprint. He won the seconds we needed, moved up to second place, and then we did everything necessary to bring him to the finish without any issues. We also tried to show ourselves in the sprint. Ivan finished excellently and brought us a remarkable victory”, – added Dmitry Sedoun, Sports Director of Astana Qazaqstan Team.
- Date:31 August 2024
- Start time:10:00 (04:00 CET)
- Avg. speed winner:45.119 km/h
- Classification:2.Pro
- Race category:ME - Men Elite
