Maxim van Gils powers away to stage win as Lotto Soudal man takes overall race lead in Saudi Tour

ByAlex Livie

Updated 04/02/2022 at 14:44 GMT

"I am not a guy who wins a lot of races so it is really special to take the victory. That was the plan," Van Gils said on Eurosport. "We are here with Caleb [Ewan] for the stage wins, but I was here for the GC. It was my job to get a good GC and today was a perfect day, so to finish it off is really nice.”

Maxim van Gils powered to victory on Stage Four of the Saudi Tour to take the overall lead.

The Belgian got in a breakaway group and powered away from the pack up the punishing climb with 10kms to run.

After taking the summit first, the Lotto Soudal rider time-trialled his way through the final 8kms to claim the win.

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Andrea Bagioli, whose Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team drove hard in the valley leading into the climb, was the only rider able to stick with Van Gils but he was dropped with 500m to run and could not chase him down on the flat.

Crosswinds split the peloton early in the stage, with race leader Santiago Buitrago and his Bahrain Victorious team caught out.

Buitrago made up ground on the climb to limit his losses, but he surrendered the green jersey to Van Gils.

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"It feels special,” Van Gils said on Eurosport. "I am not a guy who wins a lot of races so it is really special to take the victory.”

'It feels special' - Van Gils delighted with stage victory at Saudi Tour

Van Gils leads the GC by 36 seconds from Buitrago, and it was always the plan for him to make a push for overall glory.

"That was the plan,” Van Gils said. "We are here with Caleb [Ewan] for the stage wins, but I was here for the GC.

"It was my job to get a good GC and today was a perfect day, so to finish it off is really nice.”

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