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The Tour of Oman kicks off this Saturday, bringing some of the world's best cyclists to the Arabian Peninsula from February 11-15. Since its creation in 2010, the event has been established as one of the most important stage races in the Arab world, as it has been part of the ProSeries since the circuit's creation in 2020.

The route

This edition of the Tour of Oman presents a route in 5 stages, where the abundance of uphill finishes stands out. The first stage seems the only one suitable for a bunch sprint, although it includes a 1 km ramp at 5.3% 7 km from the finish line, where some riders can try to break the peloton. Stages 2 and 4 are ideal for puncheurs, with arrivals at Qurayyat (2.8 km at 7%) (stage 2) and Yitti Hills (1.7 km at 5.9%) (stage 4). Finally, stages 3 and 5 will be decisive for the general classification. Stage 3 ends at the top of Jabal Haat (4.9 km at 7.7%), while the fifth and last presents the most emblematic mountaintop finish of the race, with the ascent to Jabal Al Akhdar (Green Mountain) (5.7 km at 9.9%).

The favorites

2022 race winner Jan Hirt (400), Louis Meintjes (400), Alexey Lutsenko (600), Ruben Guerreiro (600), Ivan Ramiro Sosa (400), Fausto Masnada (400), Geofrey Bouchard (400), Emanuel Buchmann (200) and Jesús Herrada (400) are some of the best climbers on the start list and start as favorites for the general classification.

For the first race day, sprinters such as Mark Cavendish (1000), Tim Merlier (800), Pascal Ackermann (600) and Max Kanter (600) are the main candidates to win the stage and wear the first leader's jersey that goes with it, while for stages 2 and 4, Diego Ulissi (600), Giovanni Aleotti (400), Andrea Vendrame (400), Mauri Vansevenant (400), Greg Van Avermaet (400), Matteo Jorgenson (600) and Ide Schelling (400) are some of the most prominent punchy riders.