11/02/2023 | Marek Matějka, photo ASO / Oman Cycling Association / Pauline Ballet, Thomas Maheux
Tim Merlier settled in quickly with his new teammates and won the opening stage at the Tour of Oman. He beat David Dekker and Axel Zingle in the mass finish. Mark Cavendish did not make it.
The 147.4 kilometer stage to the Omani capital of Muscat was undulating with the final climb only ten kilometers from the finish line. Nevertheless, all the sprinters stayed ahead. Jeroen Meijers (Terengganu Polygon), Rodrigo Álvarez (Burgos-BH) and Oman’s Said Al Rahbi from the national selection made a long escape. This trio did not get too far ahead and did not threaten the peloton in any way.
Meijers at least took the lead in the hillclimb competition on the only graded climb of the day. Subsequently, he became independent and was caught as the last 15 kilometers before the finish line. In the final kilometers, the peloton stayed together, even in the last exit. A spurt was inevitable and it was important to maintain a good position in the peloton in the final stretch. Mark Cavendish was in front, but his own teammates from Astana caught him before the sprint and he could not go for the win.
On the contrary, Merlier had the excellent support of Jordi Warlop and Bert Van Lerberghe and indicated a wavering at the finish, because he recently had his first son, Jules, with his girlfriend Cameron Vandenbroucke, the daughter of the legendary cyclist Frank Vandenbroucke. “I’ve been a dad for eleven days so I wanted to celebrate. It was important to win this early in the season.” he said at the finish line. “I’ve already won on the terrain, but now on the road, and that’s more important. It was a slow stage, so everyone was fresh, which made it difficult to hold the position. I lost Bert Van Lerberghe for a while before the last corner, but I quickly found him again . He signaled to Jordi Warlop, who started the spurt. I started too early, but luckily it was enough to win.” added the Belgian champion.
Jan Hirt (Soudal Quick-Step) helped Merlier to victory, finishing 61st in the peloton time. Merlier’s triumph also partly belongs to Josef Černý, who reached the finish line in 119th place with a loss of 1:28.
