In the 178.4 km race, athletes reached speeds of 65 km/h despite strong winds. With crosswinds making conditions difficult, the battle for the race winner’s title was decided near the end: about 13 kilometers from the finish, a group of 13 riders broke away from the peloton, including R. Adomaitis.
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Another breakaway was made by four riders who contested the final places in the finishing straight: first to finish was Estonian Lauri Tammas (Estonian national team), second was Pole Radoslaw Fratczak (“Wibatech Lubelskie Perla Polski”), third was Magnus Machholdt (“Reffe Co:Play Giant Store”), and fourth was the winner of the first stage, Italian Alexander Konychev (“China Anta – Mentech Cycling Team”).
“The race was tough, I had to be patient all day as there were no easy sections. I received team support and, fortunately, made the right decisions. In the end, everything depended on me and my legs. I will try to win more stages, but keeping first place overall will be difficult,” said race winner L. Tammas.
R. Adomaitis, who took a high fifth place, achieved his career best in a race of this level. The 21-year-old Lithuanian was only 21 seconds behind the leading group of four.
“I am very happy, I was fifth and this is my first Top-5 in UCI races in my short career. I felt much better than yesterday. The tactic was the same, the race started after 15 kilometers, even though we rode 180 km. The first lap didn’t go well, I stayed in the second group, but since it was a long stage, I wasn’t too worried. We caught up to the leaders, in the second lap I was in a very good position and sat in the right place on the crosswind – I was riding in the top ten to twenty,” said R. Adomaitis.
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“Then 20-30 people broke away, we completed the third lap, and in the fourth I knew what awaited. I fell behind the leaders but didn’t give up and returned to the group. Then attacks started one after another and eventually I missed the final attack. I tried as much as I could, but we didn’t catch the leaders. With one kilometer left, I was riding alone, reached the finish, was fifth, and I am very happy about that.”
The overall leader remains A. Konychev, who will start on Friday wearing the yellow jersey. The winner of the second stage, L. Tammas, leads the points and U23 classifications. The most active rider category features the name of Estonian Rait Arm, leader of the Lithuanian “Energus” team.
R. Adomaitis is ranked sixth overall and second in the U23 category.
The “Tour of Lithuania” race is classified as UCI 2.2, so cyclists can earn ranking points that allow them to compete for spots in the World, European Championships, and even the Olympic Games. The “Tour of Lithuania,” held for the fourth consecutive year, consists of five stages: on Friday, cyclists will start and finish in Utena.
The “Tour of Lithuania” cycling race is partially funded by state funds administered by the National Sports Agency, as well as by the municipalities of Tauragė, Kėdainiai, Utena, Kaunas, and Vilnius.
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