Giacomo Nizzolo sprints to Stage 1 win in Abu Dhabi Tour

Italian Giacomo Nizzolo, riding for US team Trek-Segafredo, won the opening stage of the Abu Dhabi Tour on Thursday in Madinat Zayed.

Giacomo Nizzolo shown during a training session in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday ahead of Thursday's opening Stage 1 of the Abu Dhabi Tour. Claudio Peri / EPA / October 19, 2016

Italian Giacomo Nizzolo, riding for US team Trek-Segafredo, won the opening stage of the Abu Dhabi Tour on Thursday.

• Also see: Abu Dhabi Tour 2016 – Schedule, road closures, stage maps, and all the rest you need to know

Nizzolo, 27, won the sprint finish at the end of the 147km opening stage, dubbed the Adnoc Stage, which took riders from Madinat Zayed, out into the Western Region desert, and back again.

He was followed by a pair of big names in cycling, German John Degenkolb of Team Giant-Alpecin and Briton Mark Cavendish of Team Dimension Data. Degenkolb trailed by four seconds, and Cavendish by six

Sprint specialist Nizzolo, the points classification winner at the last two Giro d’Italia races, finished the stage in 3 hours 15 minutes 49 seconds. He will wear the red leader’s jersey at the start of Friday’s Stage 2. He also leads the points green jersey classification.

That stage is a 115km course that winds around Abu Dhabi city, starting at Emirates Palace, going down Khaleej Al Arabi Road, passing the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, winding out into Khalifa City and then Yas Island, to Saadiyat and Reem Islands and back through downtown with a finish along the Corniche.

STAGE 1

• 1 Giacomo Nizzolo, ITA, Trek-Segafredo, 3:15:49

• 2 John Degenkolb, GER, Giant-Alpecin, +0:04

• 3 Mark Cavendish, GBR, Dimenson Data, +0:06

• 4 Jens Keukeleire, BEL, Orica BikeExchange, +0:07 (Intermediate Sprint Black Jersey leader)

• 5 Dion Smith, NZL, One Pro, +0:09 (Young Rider White Jersey leader)

Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE

Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TheNationalSport