KUALA TERENGGANU: Terengganu Cycling Team (TSG) rider, Pierre Barbier, delivered an impressive performance to emerge champion of the first stage of the Tour of Thailand on Tuesday.
TSG’s Chief Operating Officer, Nasiruddin Wan Idrus, said the French rider clinched first place after beating 113 cyclists from 19 countries, clocking a time of two hours, 20 minutes and 32 seconds.
“The first stage covered the Nong Kha-Tha Bo-Nong Khai route over a distance of 108.6 kilometres. With this victory, we are confident of achieving our target of two podium finishes at this year’s Tour of Thailand.
“In last year’s edition, TSG secured two podium finishes, both in third place, while the team also ended the race among the top three overall,” he said when contacted by BERNAMA on Tuesday.
Second place in the opening stage of the 2026 Tour of Thailand went to La-Ning Star (LNS) rider, Alexander Saby, while third place was taken by Oskar Nisu of China Arta (CAT).
Nasiruddin said the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) 2.1 category race still has five stages remaining until March 29.
He said the upcoming stages would be more challenging as they involved mountainous routes under hot weather conditions.
Apart from Barbier, TSG is also fielding five other riders, namely Vadim Pronskiy, Adne Van Engelen, Juan Pedro Lozano Navarro, James Gadner and Muhammad Qayyim Saipul Anuwai, the only local rider in the line-up. – BERNAMA
