American rider Nikolas Milanovic took the dub on a wet and chilly day at the Tour de l’Abitibi Glencore, outsprinting France’s Alban Picard to win Stage 2 on Tuesday. Canadian Maxim Wojciechowski finished third to round out the podium.
The peloton faced steady rain and cool temperatures on the 118-km stage between Preissac and Val-d’Or, but the conditions didn’t prevent aggressive racing.
A breakaway of 10 riders formed just 12 km into the race and opened up a gap of nearly three minutes on the main bunch. With the advantage hovering at 2:50, a chase group emerged, including Wojciechowski, who bridged across with the help of two American riders.
“When the break went, I thought the race was over,” Wojciechowski said. “But I saw an opportunity to close the gap and when I looked back, two Americans were coming with me. We worked together and made it to the front.”
Milanovic took the brown leader’s jersey with the win, while Picard took over both the points classification and best young rider standings. Canada’s Paul Hawrylak kept the climber’s jersey.
The Tour continues Thursday with a double-stage day: a 9.3-km time trial in downtown Val-d’Or in the morning, followed by a 58-kilometre road stage in Malartic in the afternoon.
The Tour de l’Abitibi is the only North American stop on the UCI Junior Nations Cup calendar and features some of the top under-19 riders from around the world. Just a few days earlier, the first-ever junior women’s took place.
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