Jan Hirt wins the Tour of Oman

Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux had the mission to defend the leader's jersey of Jan Hirt in the sixth and final stage of the Tour d’Oman (2.Pro, 10-15/02). One day after the collective demonstration in the queen stage during which the Czech rider conquered the red kit, the line up directed by Valerio Piva again brilliantly accomplished its mission in a stage suited for sprinters.

The five teammates of the red jersey first controlled the advantage of the early breakaway of seven riders and kept it within two minutes, before the contenders in the general classification tried to make use of the two categorized climbs in the second race half.

The World Team stayed united around it's leader and followed the multiple accelerations in the climbs of Al Hamriyah (0.8km at 9.9%) and Al Jissah (1km at 9.2%) where the early breakaway was caught. A compact peloton started the three local laps around Matrah Corniche and the stage victory was decided in a bunch sprint. Just like in the opening stage, neo pro Hugo Page was in the mix and took fifth place.

By crossing the line in the same time as the stage winner, Hirt took the victory in the general classification and offered Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux a fourth succes in 2022. His teammate Rein Taaramäe accompanies him in the top ten with an eighth place in the final classification.

Jan Hirt:
"Yesterday, it was a fantastic feeling to throw my hands in the air for the first time in six years. The GC win is a great bonus. I'm grateful for the help of my teammates. We raced together all week and never panicked when our competitors tried to surprise us with attacks today. I'm in the best shape of my life and found a renewed love for cycling within Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux. I needed some time to adapt to my new environment after the difficult Covid-period before achieving a good level mentally and physically at the end of last season. I worked well with my coach Ioannis Tamouridis and the nutrition team this winter and both confirmed that I was ready to start the season with confidence. I hope to benefit from this good form for a long time, I'm already looking forward to the UAE Tour!"

Final classification:
1. Jan Hirt
2. Fausto Masnada +1:00
3. Rui Costa +1:16
8. Rein Taaramäe +1:51
18. Hugo Page +4:38
63. Tom Devriendt +28:20
78. Julius Johansen +45:21
79. Kévin Van Melsen +53:35