CYCLING – Team Bahrain Victorious star Alessandro Borgo sprinted to an impressive third place yesterday on stage four of the Renewi Tour in Belgium, securing a superb result against some of the fastest finishers in the peloton.
The 187-kilometre leg started in Riemst and finished in Bilzen-Hoeselt, with the day expected to come down to a bunch sprint.
The breakaway was kept under control throughout the stage, as the teams targeting the sprint managed the gap and ensured the race came back together ahead of the finale.
The closing kilometres proved more selective, with a late climb offering an opportunity for attacks.
Borgo, who is not a pure sprinter but possesses a fast finish, showed his strength by following an acceleration from Arnaud De Lie of Lotto Intermarche and Florian Vermeersch of UAE Team Emirates-XRG with around seven kilometres remaining.
After the move was brought back, Bahrain Victorious’ Matej Mohoric guided the young Italian through the final kilometres and into an excellent position for the sprint.
Borgo launched with around 200 metres remaining and held on for an impressive third place, finishing behind two of the strongest sprinters in the race in stage winner Jasper Philipsen of Alpecin-Premier Tech and runner-up Olav Kooij of Decathlon CMA CGM Team.
The podium is another significant result for Borgo as he continues to demonstrate his versatility and ability to compete for results at the UCI World Tour level.
“It was a hard finale,” said Borgo.
“De Lie and Vermeersch tried to attack on the last climb with around seven kilometres to go. I felt I had good legs, so I followed them, but then we stopped and the group came back.”
“In the final kilometres, Matej put me in a great position behind Unibet, who did a good lead-out for Groenewegen.
“I started my sprint with around 200m to go and got closed in a little, but I was still able to produce a good sprint. I’m sharing the podium with two really strong guys, so I’m really happy.”
With yesterday’s stage result, Borgo remained third in the best young rider rankings while teammate Alec Segaert was Bahrain Victorious’ best-placed rider in the general classification, climbing two spots to sixth.
The Renewi Tour now heads to its final leg today, covering 183.7km.
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