NANNING, China, Oct. 22 -- Tim Wellens of Lotto Soudal became the new owner of the red jersey in the 2017 Gree UCI WorldTour Tour of Guangxi as the Belgium was the first to climb to the top of the mountainous Nongla Scenic Area on the fourth day of the Tour on Sunday.
The fourth stage of the inaugural Tour of Guangxi is the only one with a steep climb as the end point of the race. The cyclists had to climb over 100 meters vertically in the last 3km of the 151km race, a great challenge for their stamina.
Over 10 riders including Nicolas Roche of BMC, Bauke Mollema of Trek-Segafredo and Wellens rushed ahead in the last 3km, and Wellens showcased his strong climbing capability as he led Mollema by one second and Roche by five to win the stage.
Roche took the green jersey from teammate Silvan Dillier. Fernando Gaviria of Quick Step Floors still kept his blue jersey, and the white jersey was taken away by his teammate Julian Alaphilippe. Victor Campenaerts won the "most active rider" of the stage.
After this decisive stage, Colombian Gaviria, who led the first three stages, was five minutes behind Wellens, but Alaphilippe still has the hope for the title in the overall classification.
The fifth and penultimate stage will be the longest race in the six-day event from Liuzhou to Guilin with two sprints and four climbs.