Azernews.Az

By Laman Ismayilova

Twenty two teams from 18 countries struggled in the first stage of Tour d’Azerbaidjan-2017 on May 3.

This is the sixth edition of the event, which started in 2012 as the Heydar Aliyev Anniversary Tour (U23) after which it became the Tour d’Azerbaidjan.

The first stage of the race started from the National Flag Square in Baku and finished in Sumgayit city (150-km distance).

Mihkel Räim (Israel Cycling Academy) has won the opening stage of Tour d’Azerbaidjan, crossing the finish line in Sumgayit just ahead of Emils Liepins (Rietumu Banka - Riga) and Pier Paolo De Negri (Nippo - Vini Fantini).

After three years of competing at Tour d'Azerbaidjan it is the first stage win and the first GC-jersey for Mihkel Räim.

On May 4, the second stage will take the start from the Velopark near the Caspian seashore and head out to high Caucasus Mountains racing 187 km distance from Baku to Ismayilli. The stage looks challenging with strong winds, winding roads and uphill.

The third stage will take the start from Gabala to Oghuzh racing 177 km towards Sheki then racing all the way around finishing in Gabala. Stones on a site near the medieval Caravanserai can become a serious challenge for the riders.

The start of the fourth stage is in Gabala. After racing 164 km kilometers the riders will reach up to the finish line near Pirqulu. The route will go through Aghsu mountain cliffs up to Pirgulu.

With total of 158-km distance the fifth stage will be held in Baku, including central avenues and streets of the Azerbaijani capital.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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