Phinney leads after 1st stage of Dubai Tour

DUBAI: American Taylor Phinney won the first stage of the inaugural Dubai Tour on Wednesday, finishing ahead of a quality field in a 10 kilometer individual time trial.

The 23-year-old from Boulder, Colorado, who specializes in time trials and individual pursuits, clocked 12 minutes 3 seconds.

His BMC Racing teammate Steven Cummings of Britain was second, 14 seconds behind.Denmark´s Lasse Norman Hansen of Garmin Sharp was third, 2 seconds further back.

World time trial champion Tony Martin, of Omega Pharma QuickStep, finished fourth in the German rider´s opening race of the 2014 season, 22 seconds behind Phinney.

Thursday´s second stage covers 121.6 kilometers, starting from central Dubai and finishing at the Palm Jumeirah, a palm-shaped manmade island. (AP)