Published February 11, 2013 07:35AM
Kittel wins stage 1 at the 2013 Tour of Oman
German beats Appollonio, Bouhanni in bunch sprint
Marcel Kittel returned to his winning ways in Oman on Monday. Photo: Graham Watson | <a id="www.grahamwatson.com" href="http://grahamwatson.com">www.grahamwatson.com</a>
SULTA QABOOS UNIVERSITY, Oman (AFP) — Marcel Kittel (Argos-Shimano) won stage 1 at the Tour of Oman on Monday.
The German was tops in the bunch sprint to close the 162km stage between Al Musannah and Sultan Qaboos University, west of Muscat. With the win, Kittel became the six-day race’s first overall leader.
Davide Appollonio (Ag2r La Mondiale) was second. French champion Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) was third.
In his first race of the season, Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) was fifth. Boonen missed his planned start at the Tour of Qatar last week following elbow surgery in January.
The Tour of Oman continues Tuesday with the 146km second stage from Fanja in Bidbid to Al Bustan.