„Energus“ was among the leaders in the earlier stages as well – the team took third place in the team time trial, and Rait Arm finished fourth in the second stage.
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„Baltic Chain Tour“ is an international UCI calendar multi-day road cycling race. This year, the „Energus“ team was represented by six athletes: Rait Arm, Martinš Pluto, Olivers Jekabs Skrapcis, Marceli Pera, Karlis Klismets, and Lithuanian Rokas Adomaitis.
The race started on Friday in Riga, at the Biķernieki track, with a 5.4 km team time trial. The „Energus“ athletes completed the distance in 5 min. 49.8 sec. and took third place, establishing themselves among the strongest race teams from the very first kilometers.
On the same day, the athletes faced a completely different challenge – a 191.1 km stage from Riga to Valga on the Estonian border. After a short and very fast fight against the clock, the long first stage became a serious endurance test and began to shape the positions of the overall classification leaders.
Rain and strong wind split the peloton
On the second day of the competition, the cyclists covered 175.6 km on Estonian roads. The race was significantly complicated by strong wind, rain, and constantly changing weather conditions. The wind repeatedly split the peloton into smaller groups, so the athletes had to not only fight for positions but also constantly react to the actions of their rivals.
„Energus“ remained active at the front of the race, and the best team result was achieved by Estonian Rait Arm. He crossed the finish line fourth, just behind the top three prize winners.
After two difficult days, „Energus“ entered the final stage still with the possibility to fight for another high result. This was ultimately brought to the team by M. Pluto.
With 2 kilometers left – only a 10-second lead
The final stage on Sunday stretched through the hilly surroundings of southern Estonia. Although the 147.5 km distance was the shortest of all group stages, it did not promise an easy finish for the athletes. Attacks were frequent from the start, and the peloton split into several groups during the race.
About 10 km before the finish, the leading breakaway group began to fall apart, but Latvian road champion Martinš Pluto was not going to give up. The „Energus“ cyclist eventually remained alone at the front of the race and tried to reach the finish before being caught by the main group.
With 5 km left, his lead was only 15 seconds. With about 2 km remaining – just 10 seconds. Behind him, the peloton was rapidly approaching and preparing for a group sprint.
„I believed I could win with about two kilometers to go,“ M. Pluto said after the race.
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The belief was enough. The Latvian champion managed to maintain the minimal lead and crossed the finish line alone, winning the final stage of the „Baltic Chain Tour“.
Second place went to Polish Michał Pomorski from „ATT Investments“, and third was his compatriot Bartłomiej Proć from „Wibatech Lubelskie Perła Polski“.
For M. Pluto, this was already his third victory of the 2026 season. This summer, the „Energus“ cyclist also won the Latvian road champion title. In the final overall classification of the „Baltic Chain Tour“, he took ninth place and was the best-performing Latvian cyclist.
I. Konovalovas: we must prove that we can constantly compete with the strongest European teams
According to „Energus“ team leader, former professional cyclist and „Giro d’Italia“ stage winner Ignatas Konovalovas, the most important result of these races is not only the final stage victory but also the team’s stability throughout all three days of the competition.
„The most important thing for us was that every day we were visible at the front of the race and fought for the highest positions. We started with third place in the team time trial, Rait fought for the podium in the second stage, and Mārtiņš finished the tour with a victory. This shows that we are not dependent on one leader or one race scenario. We have athletes with different strengths who, when the opportunity arises, can take responsibility and fight for the result,“ says I. Konovalovas.
According to him, results in international UCI races are especially important for the team to achieve increasing competitiveness beyond the Baltic countries.
„Our ambitions do not end with victories at home or in the Baltic countries. We want the name „Energus“ to be recognized in international cycling and to be able to constantly compete for victories with strong European teams. There is no shortcut here – we have to prove our strength in every race, collect results and UCI points. Victories are important, but no less important is how the team performs throughout the races. This tour once again showed that we are moving in the right direction,“ says the team leader.
In the overall 2026 „Baltic Chain Tour“ classification, the winner was Estonian national team cyclist Lauri Tamm, who edged out teammate Norman Vahtra by just three seconds.
„Energus“ finished the three-day race with a stage victory, third place in the team time trial, fourth place for R. Arm in the second stage, and M. Pluto’s ninth place in the overall classification.
For the team, this was another important test of the international season, where they had to adapt to different race scenarios – from team time trials and difficult weather conditions to tactical attacks and the final kilometers’ fight with the entire chasing peloton.
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