CHAVES FIRST ABU DHABI TOUR CHAMPION
12 October 2015
The Colombian entered the last day of racing with a 16second buffer to Fabio Aru (Astana Pro Team) and maintained that advantage thanks to the support of his ORICA-GreenEDGE teammates on what was another sprint finish.
After a fifth overall at the Vuelta a Espana, the victory marks the 25-year-old’s first professional overall victory at a multi-stage race.
“First a mountain stage win, then my first general classification in a professional stage race. I am very, very happy,” Chaves said after he crossed the finish line. To win the first Abu Dhabi Tour is beautiful: it is the first edition of the race, and my first GC too. I'm happy for the team, and the team is very happy for me. As I follow my winter training program, I will be remembering this race."
How it happened ?
Day three of the Abu Dhabi Tour was dubbed as a ‘medium mountain stage’ by organisers, but ORICA-GreenEDGE was expecting a tough and elite battle on the final climb.
Rafaa Chtioui (Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team - Al Ahli Club) and Alessandro Bazzana (UnitedHealthcare) took up the early duties in the break but never threatened as the general classification outfits thrived on their day to take the stage.
The duo held a one-minute advantage at the start of the final climb – an 11km ascent at an average of 7% with steep ramps of 12%. Astana led the chase hard and had the race back together and front group down to just 30riders with eight kilometers remaining. Nibali was the first to attack with 5.5km to go. The Italian was first joined by Poels, and later by Chaves, who bridged and immediately attacked.
Nibali briefly joined the 25-year-old before dropping behind. The composite of the chase changed shape on a number of occasions as Chaves rode out to a 20second advantage. It was Poels who looked most likely to hose down the bold move of the ORICA-GreenEDGE rider and the pair eventually came together in the final kilometer.
Poels led Chaves narrowly into the final corner, just meters before the line, but slid out and crashed. Chaves claimed the stage victory ahead of Aru for the overall lead.Featured Athletes
