Paul Magnier Wins Tour of Guangxi Sprint Marred by Massive Crash

Paul Magnier claimed victory in the opening stage of the Tour of Guangxi. The Frenchman was the fastest in the bunch sprint, after a large part of the peloton crashed or was held up in a massive pile-up during the final kilometer. Max Kanter finished second, Jordi Meeus third.

The WorldTour once again concludes this year with the Tour of Guangxi, a six-day stage race in China. The first stage of the race was a relatively flat route consisting of four laps in and around Fangchenggang. There were a few climbs on the course, but a bunch sprint still seemed the most likely scenario.

Valter and Le Berre
Many riders attempted to break away in the early phase. Among them was Frank van den Broek, but the Dutchman was quickly reeled back in. Then a breakaway group formed with Aurélien Paret-Peintre (Decathlon AG2R), Rémy Rochas (Groupama-FDJ), and Julius Johansen (UAE Emirates-XRG). They held out longer, but after a peloton acceleration — which even caused some ruptures momentarily — they were also caught.

Paret-Peintre, Johansen and Rochas - photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos