Smart, cunning, and above all, unstoppable: Olav Kooij secures another sprint win in Oman even on a slightly uphill finish

Olav Kooij (Visma | Lease a Bike) has won the flat fourth stage of the Tour of Oman. At the Oman Convention and Exhibition Center, he proved to be the fastest in a bunch sprint after a slightly uphill final kilometer.

After two tougher stages, stage four was once again a chance for the sprinters in the Tour of Oman. They had already had one opportunity on the first day, which was expertly seized by Kooij for Visma | Lease a Bike. The Dutch team knew exactly what to expect in this fourth stage: a lot of control and plenty of eyes on them, as the "Cheetah from Numansdorp"  stood out once again as the clear favorite.

Three riders broke away early: Malaysian Muhammad Haizam Mohd Shabri, Thai Kongphob Thimachai, and Omani Abdulrehman Al Yaaqubi were given plenty of space by the peloton, effectively allowing them to take a half-rest day. Visma | Lease a Bike positioned Pietro Mattio from their development squad at the front of the peloton, receiving support from Groupama-FDJ, which had race leader David Gaudu in its ranks. Picnic PostNL also contributed a rider to the chase, working in support of their sprinter Pavel Bittner.

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Lead out riders can be saved for a long time in Oman

The rider from Oman couldn't keep up with his two breakaway companions halfway through the race, and soon after, the Thai rider suffered a puncture. The Malaysian then decided to wait for his companion so they could continue together as a duo in this fourth stage of the Tour of Oman. Apart from that, not much happened during this phase of the race—this was the chronicle of an inevitable bunch sprint.

With a long, slightly descending stretch leading into the business district of Muscat, only Thimachai remained out front, meaning that for the two Dutch teams in the chase, it was enough to keep just one rider at the front. This allowed the rest of the planned sprint train to conserve energy for a lightning-fast finale.

And so it happened—within the final fifteen kilometers, suddenly, many more teams wanted to be at the front. The time for play was over; faces turned serious, and the big gears started spinning faster. The yellow train of Visma | Lease a Bike initially stayed in the heart of the peloton, waiting for the right moment to surge forward in the last ten kilometers.

On the wide roundabouts of the Middle East, the peloton stretched out into a long line multiple times, but Steven Kruijswijk kept his teammates well-positioned as their road captain. Other experienced riders, like Rafal Majka (UAE Team Emirates XRG), were seen doing the same for their teams.

With three kilometers to go, the pace really picked up. Nikias Behrens launched forward at full speed, with Dan McLay and Kooij right behind him. However, Kooij got squeezed in on the inside and briefly found himself boxed in, but an opening on the opposite side emerged thanks to Uno-X. This allowed Behrens to move up again and perfectly position his teammates, in the wake of the Norwegian squad. Sprinting off Erlend Blikra’s wheel, Kooij powered to a dominant victory.

Results stage 4 Tour of Oman 2025

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