Alexey Lutsenko secured the victory in the 3rd stage of the Tour of Turkey, the queen stage of 2023, after an incredibly steep final climb.
A short and intense day of racing, the stage was only 104 km long, but many steep climbs and treacherous descents ensured plenty of action.
When the race reached 18 km from the finish and at the foot of the final climb, the breakaway of the day was caught, and the peloton took over at the front of the race. A counter-attack by Alexis Guerin (Bingoal WB) saw him quickly open up a gap.
The Frenchman’s decision to attack at the beginning of the climb seemed to be a masterstroke as the chasing group led by BORA-hansgrohe dwindled, and even captains like Jay Vine couldn’t keep up with him.
However, with 10 km to go, Guerin was caught, leaving only four riders at the front, two from BORA-hansgrohe and two from Astana Qazaqstan Team.
In the final 3 km, the group was reduced to just Ben Zwiehoff, Harold Tejada, and Alexey Lutsenko. Zwiehoff’s acceleration left Tejada behind, but Lutsenko held onto the German’s wheel, and about 500 meters from the finish, the Kazakh national champion made his final attack, winning the queen stage.
With this result, Lutsenko takes the General Classification lead of the 2023 Tour of Turkey.
Watch Lutsenko’s finish:
Results of Stage 3 of the Tour of Turkey:
General Classification of the 2023 Tour of Turkey:
