The first UAE Tour from A to Z

Dubai, 3 March 2019 – The first edition of the UAE Tour ended in style yesterday. Let’s relive it through this year’s “UAE Alphabet”:

A FOR ADNOC

As well as sponsoring Stage 1, the Team Time Trial, ADNOC was the sponsor of the Green Jersey, the Classification by Points Jersey. This was worn by both Jos van Emden (Team Jumbo – Visma) and Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates), for one day each. It was then worn by Stepan Kuriyanov for four days in a row and won by Elia Viviani after the last sprint at City Walk.

B FOR BLACK JERSEY

The Intermediate Sprint Jersey, sponsored by Abu Dhabi Aviation, which was awarded to two riders: Primoz Roglic and (Team Jumbo – Visma) and Stepan Kuriyanov (Gazprom – RusVelo), who defended it until the very last day. Strangely enough, he wore it during the race only on Stage 3, being the leader at the same time of the Green Jersey.

C FOR CHALLENGE

More than 1,000 amateurs took part in the four stages of the UAE Tour Challenge, and the last stage at Jebel Jais was completely sold out. The winners of the General Classification were Vladimir Gusev (male classification) and Diana Adelshinova (female). The winners of the UAE classification were Farah Almarri (male) and Rashid Albaloushi (female).

D FOR DUBAI

The 2020 UAE Tour will reverse the 2019 route. It will start in Dubai and finish in Abu Dhabi.

E FOR EMIRATES

The General Classification Jersey, sponsored by Emirates, was worn by Primoz Roglic of Team Jumbo – Visma from the first stage to the last.

F FOR FAN ZONE

The two fan zones at Yas Mall and City Walk were a great success. Both were packed with fans every day, enjoying the cycling-related activities, the kids’ areas and the race live on the big screens.

G FOR GAVIRIA

The UAE Team Emirates acquired the services of the world’s current fastest sprinter, Fernando Gaviria, who scored a historic home victory on Stage 2 in Abu Dhabi.

H FOR HOSPITALITY

The UAE Tour provided over 3,700 square metres of hospitality area for all the guests, with a total of 4,000 lunches served during the seven stage.

I for Intermediate Sprint

The winner of the Intermediate Sprint Classification Stepan Kuriyanov of Gazprom – RusVelo was in the breakaway for four consecutive days, together with Charles Planet from Team Novo Nordisk, a unique team made up entirely of diabetic cyclists.

J for Journalists

127 members of the media attended the UAE Tour, comprising 86 journalists and 41 photographers, representing 78 international and national media outlets.

K for Km

The riders of the inaugural UAE Tour covered 1073 km at the average speed of 40,546 km/h.

L for Likes

The UAE Tour was a trending hashtag in the UAE for eight consecutive days. Other impressive numbers include: over 6 millions of impressions on Facebook; 1.6 million on Instagram; 1 million on Twitter; and 3.3 million Facebook video plays.

M for Mubadala

Mubadala was one of the top sponsors of the inaugural UAE Tour. In addition, the Abu Dhabi-based company was a proud supporter of both the Educational Project and the UAE Tour Challenge.

N for Numbers

The UAE Tour delivered more than 16,000kg of team equipment from all the five continents, provided more than 4,000 nights of accommodation and approved around 2,000 accreditations, including riders, team staff, VIPs, officials, media, TV production and sponsors. 50km of barricades were placed during the seven stages and 14,000 meters were branded with the names of the UAE Tour sponsors.

O for Official Time

16’49.02” was the recorded time of the Jumbo – Visma squad at an impressive average speed of 57.086km/h in the opening Team Time Trial in Abu Dhabi.

P for Primoz

The inaugural UAE Tour has a fantastic winner in Primoz Roglic who keeps improving his results since landing late in the WorldTour following his first successful sporting career as a ski jumper. The Slovenian is tipped by many experts to become the world’s number 1 in the coming few months.

Q for Quote

“I started cycling in 2012 after being a ski jumper. For some cyclists, results have come quickly and easily but for myself it’s been a long and difficult journey to reach this level,” said the winner of the UAE Tour, Primoz Roglic, during the final press conference.

R for Riders

140 riders started the UAE Tour on February 24. 131 completed all seven stages. The General classification by teams was won by Bora – Hansgrohe. Their riders completed the seven stages in 78 hours, 52 minutes and 35 seconds.

S for Students

Over 2,000 students from ten different schools in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Hatta and Dubai attended the Educational Project supported by Mubadala. The UAE Tour Educational Project is aimed at introducing children aged between 8 and 12 years old to cycling as a part of a healthy lifestyle and safety on the road. It is geared to be a first step into developing an interest in cycling at a young age, with the UAE Tour becoming a major event, inspiring and creating a connection for the youth of tomorrow.

T for Television

The UAE Tour was shown all over the world, thanks to the two Host broadcasters, Dubai Sports and Abu Dhabi Sports and the other 11 rightholders: Eurosport (64 territories in Europe and Asia Pacific region), RAI (Italy), La Chaîne L’Équipe (France), SuperSport (South Africa), Sky Sports (New Zealand), DAZN (Japan), ESPN (40 territories in South America and the Caribbeans), FloSports (USA & Canada), FuboTV (USA & Canada), TDN (Mexico & Central America) and the Olympic Channel.

U for UAE

All seven Emirates were involved in the 2019 UAE Tour’s route: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm-Al-Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah.

V for Vehicles

Big thanks to the UAE Tour Official Car, Audi Al Nabooda, who provided a total of 70 cars for teams, jury and race management.

W for World Champion

It was a long awaited first win for Alejandro Valverde after he became the World Champion in September 2018. It happened at Jebel Hafeet where the Spanish rider repeated his victory of last year but with an even better taste, due to the famous rainbow stripes.

X for XL

The biggest size required for the official UAE Tour Jersey, made by Castelli.

Y for best Young rider

The best Young rider David Gaudu, awarded the White Jersey sponsored by Nakheel, is on the final podium with two established champions and ahead of many others. It’s his first ever WorldTour podium, and we are witnessing the probable birth of a future champion in the UAE.

Z for Zayed

H. H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed declared 2019 as the Year of Tolerance. The mission of this celebration is for the UAE to be a bridge of communication between peoples of different cultures in a respectful environment that rejects extremism and emphasises the acceptance of each other. The UAE Tour was certainly part of this vision, thanks to 140 riders from 28 different countries and five different continents.

See you in 2020!

Download:

Stage 1 Photo Gallery
Stage 2 Photo Gallery
Stage 3 Photo Gallery
Stage 4 Photo Gallery
Stage 5 Photo Gallery
Stage 6 Photo Gallery
Stage 7 Photo Gallery

UAE TOUR PRESS ROOM

From the official online pressroom the media can download high resolution pictures of the race. In order to download the pictures, just go to http://pressroom.rcssport.it/ (username: press/ password: press), select “Media”, then “Cycling”, then UAE Tour. The photos are free of charge for editorial use, as long as both the UAE Tour and the photographer’s name is quoted.

#UAETOUR
www.theuaetour.com

Photo Credit: LaPresse / Ferrari – Paolone