French sprinter Rudy Barbier was in the mix for glory in the first stage of the Tour de Hongrie. Israel – Premier Tech’s team leader for the flat stages sprinted to fourth.
It was a rather calm day on the road in Hungary. An early breakaway went up the road, but did not stand a chance against the peloton.
Among the top sprinters in this race, like Fabio Jakobsen, Dylan Groenewegen and Elia Viviani, Barbier was IPT’s card to play. The French rider, maneuvered himself into an excellent position in the final chicane with 800 meters to go and sprinted to fourth from there.
“There was some battling for positions before the last kilometer, and my teammates put me in a good position. In the chicane I maintained fifth. I wish I could sprint to the podium, but I had to settle for fourth.”
Tomorrow there is another chance for sprinters. The second stage is flat.
