Tour of Oman – stage 4.
The NIPPO Vini Fantini team achieve another important placement in Tour of Oman, with the 10th position of Marco Canola in the 4th stage. Hard race for all the group, but also stronger for Marco Canola, that is riding with the flu since the begin of the Tour. In today race, also thanks to the precious help of his team-mates he achieve a good placement, that anyway don’t give him a full satisfaction: “In these days has been very hard to remain in the group and in race” these the words of Canola at the end of the stage “I never give up, also thanks to the help of all my teammates. Today I was not yet in good condition, but I wanted to try to do my best for the team, achieving this placement. At the last bend I had to brake because I was closed so I miss the opportunity to battle for the victory, but anyway this is a good placement considering that I was sick. When I will feel better I want and I have to do much more.”
Today placement is important also looking to the kind of riders in front of him, big of the sprint, starting from the winner Alexander Kristoff (Team Katusha-Alpecin).
Stefano Giuliani, from the team car comments the performance of the team: “I’m happy for the race of Marco Canola, it wasn’t easy in his condition after the flu to make the sprint. He was strongly determined, he studied the stage and we decide to race for him today, also to reward his determination. In these stages also Ivan Santaromita made a good job, he demonstrate he can be an expert rider for the team. Arredondo did good things yesterday, also if he have to find his good condition he already did a good effort yesterday trying an action in the final km. The team is growing up.”
The team rode 4 stages here in Oman, collecting 2 sprint placements with Grosu (12° in the first stage) and Canola (10° in the 4th stage), with two important breakaway of Marangoni and Kuboki, that in the third stage also catch a GPM.
Tomorrow the #OrangeBlue riders will be riding the hardest stage of the Tour of Oman with the Green Mountain, the strongest climb of the race.