4th Tour of Japan, Cat 2.4

Japan, May 16-23, 1999

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Stage 1, Senboku Circuit, Sakai City, Osaka, 140.8 kms:

Miwako Sasaki, who is reporting from the Tour of Japan for cyclingnews.com writes that Italian Moreno Di Biase won the first stage of the 4th edition of the Tour of Japan. He beat Silvio Martinello in a mass sprint and took the overall green leader's jersey as a result.

100 riders started the circuit course (12.8km x 11 laps) at Sakai city, which is the hometown of the Shimano company. It was cloudy and the temperature was 22.3 celsius with north winds. At km 50, three unknown Japanese riders went away but they were caught with 30 kms still to ride. The peloton was dominated by the Polti team, which was aiming to set Martinello up in the bunch sprint. In the finale, Martinello attacked first but Di Biase, who is in his second year as a professional, passed him and won. The 23-year old Italian said later: "All was our tactics."

He will start tomorrow's Stage 2 (wearing the green leader's jersey) in front of the huge statue of the Buddha at Nara. 

  1. Moreno Di Biase (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                 3.01.09 (46.64 km/h)
  2. Silvio Martinello (Ita) Team Polti
  3. Jacek Mickiewicz (Pol) Mroz
  4. Glen Mitchell (NZ) New Zealand
  5. Greame Miller (NZ) New Zealand
  6. Jimmy Hansen (Den) Saturn
  7. Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)
  8. Gianpaolo Mondini (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)
  9. Makoto Iijima (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 10. Dariusz Wojciechowski (Pol) Mroz
 11. Junichi Shibuya (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 12. Shinri Suzuki (Jap) Shimano Racing
 13. Sergey Beloussov (Kaz) Kazakstan
 14. Emanuele Negrini (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)
 15. Michael Rogers (Aus) Australia National Team
 16. Stephane Auroux (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 17. Takehiro Mizutani (Jap) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 18. Arkadiusz Wojtas (Pol) Mroz
 19. Andrey Kashechnin (Kaz) Kazakstan
 20. Pavel Nevdakh (Kaz) Kazakstan
 21. Xuezhong Tang (Chn) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 22. Andrzej Sypytkowski (Pol) Mroz
 23. Hidenori Nodera (Jap) Shimano Racing
 24. Cameron Mcdonald (Aus) Australia National Team
 25. Takeshi Okamoto (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
 26. Eiko Takahashi (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
 27. Tae Ho Kim (Kor) Korea
 28. Nobuhide Suezawa (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 29. Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Team Polti
 30. Takashi Yamada (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 31. Christophe Gauthier (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 32. Morito Yamamoto (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 33. Cezary Zamana (Pol) Mroz
 34. Taechan Chang (Kor) Korea
 35. Nick Gates (Aus) Die Continentale/Olympia
 36. Kyoshi Miura (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 37. Warren Clark (NZ) New Zealand
 38. Tetsuya Okada (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 39. Allan Davis (Aus) Australia National Team
 40. Leonardo Guidi (Ita) Team Polti
 41. Yasutaka Tashiro (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 42. Richard Chassot (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia
 43. Daisuke Sakuta (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 44. Kairat Baigudinov (Kaz) Kazakstan
 45. Susumu Oikawa (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
 46. Keita Seino (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 47. Taiji Tanaka (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 48. Frank McCormack (USA) Saturn
 49. Takahiro Yamada (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 50. Yoshiyuki Abe (Jap) Shimano Racing
 51. Hideyuki Nishiyama (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 52. Jong-Jae Kim (Kor) Korea
 53. Shinji Suzuki (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 54. Naofumi Imanishi (Jap) Shimano Racing
 55. Ryan Russell (NZ) New Zealand
 56. Ken Hasikawa (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 57. Tomokazu Fujino (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 58. Nobuhiro Mashimo (Jap) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 59. Grzegorz Wajs (Pol) Mroz
 60. Daisuke Nakayama (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 61. Osamu Sumida (Jap) Shimano Racing
 62. Brian Walton (Can) Saturn
 63. Sergey Lavrenenko (Kaz) Kazakstan
 64. Darren Murray (NZ) New Zealand
 65. Vladim Kravchenko (Kaz) Kazakstan
 66. Chris Wherry (USA) Saturn
 67. Hans-Kurt Brand (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia
 68. Shinji Ikeda (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 69. Yasunori Kato (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)
 70. Naokiyo Hashisako (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
 71. Adham Sbeih (USA) Saturn
 72. Benoit Luminet (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 73. In Chan Park (Kor) Korea
 74. Yasuhiro Nakajima (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 75. Makio Madarame (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
 76. Ho-Sung Cho (Kor) Korea
 77. Kazuya Okazaki (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 78. Cristiano Colleoni (Ita) Team Polti
 79. Brendon Vesty (NZ) New Zealand
 80. Sebastien Laroche (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures
 81. Scott Davis (Aus) Australia National Team
 82. Hideto Yukinari (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 83. Jason Phillips (Aus) Die Continentale/Olympia
 84. Ikki Yoneyama (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi
 85. Daniel Paradis (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia
 86. Bjorn Glasner (Ger) Die Continentale/Olympia
 87. Shinichi Fukushima (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)
 88. Tomoya Kanou (Jap) Shimano Racing
 89. Nathan O'Neill (Aus) Australia National Team
 90. Masanari Tate (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 91. Akihiro Osawa (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 92. Kazuyuki Manabe (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing
 93. Masahiro Yasuhara (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 94. Osamu Kurimura (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)
 95. Gabriele Colombo (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)
 96. Min-woo Kong (Kor) Korea
 97. Denis Lunghi (Ita) Team Polti
 98. Germano Pierdomenico (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)
 99. Mitsuhiro Taninai (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)
100. Mirco Crepaldi (Ita) Team Polti                                     s.t.

GC after Stage 1 

  1. Moreno Di Biase (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                 3.00.59
  2. Silvio Martinello (Ita) Team Polti                                  0.04
  3. Osamu Sumida (Jap) Shimano Racing                                   0.04
  4. Jacek Mickiewicz (Pol) Mroz                                         0.06
  5. Osamu Kurimura (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                                0.06
  6. Glen Mitchell (NZ) New Zealand                                      0.07
  7. Dariusz Wojciechowski (Pol) Mroz                                    0.07
  8. Tomokazu Fujino (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                      0.09
  9. Brian Walton (Can) Saturn                                           0.09
 10. Greame Miller (NZ) New Zealand                                      0.10
 11. Jimmy Hansen (Den) Saturn                                           0.10
 12. Marcus Ljungqvist (Swe) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                  0.10
 13. Gianpaolo Mondini (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                  0.10
 14. Makoto Iijima (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                     0.10
 15. Junichi Shibuya (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                      0.10
 16. Shinri Suzuki (Jap) Shimano Racing                                  0.10
 17. Sergey Beloussov (Kaz) Kazakstan                                    0.10
 18. Emanuele Negrini (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                   0.10
 19. Michael Rogers (Aus) Australia National Team                        0.10
 20. Stephane Auroux (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures                 0.10
 21. Takehiro Mizutani (Jap) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures               0.10
 22. Arkadiusz Wojtas (Pol) Mroz                                         0.10
 23. Andrey Kashechnin (Kaz) Kazakstan                                   0.10
 24. Pavel Nevdakh (Kaz) Kazakstan                                       0.10
 25. Xuezhong Tang (Chn) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                     0.10
 26. Andrzej Sypytkowski (Pol) Mroz                                      0.10
 27. Hidenori Nodera (Jap) Shimano Racing                                0.10
 28. Cameron Mcdonald (Aus) Australia National Team                      0.10
 29. Takeshi Okamoto (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                        0.10
 30. Eiko Takahashi (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                         0.10
 31. Tae Ho Kim (Kor) Korea                                              0.10
 32. Nobuhide Suezawa (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                         0.10
 33. Fabio Sacchi (Ita) Team Polti                                       0.10
 34. Takashi Yamada (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                          0.10
 35. Christophe Gauthier (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures             0.10
 36. Morito Yamamoto (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                   0.10
 37. Cezary Zamana (Pol) Mroz                                            0.10
 38. Taechan Chang (Kor) Korea                                           0.10
 39. Nick Gates (Aus) Die Continentale/Olympia                           0.10
 40. Kyoshi Miura (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                                  0.10
 41. Warren Clark (NZ) New Zealand                                       0.10
 42. Tetsuya Okada (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                        0.10
 43. Allan Davis (Aus) Australia National Team                           0.10
 44. Leonardo Guidi (Ita) Team Polti                                     0.10
 45. Yasutaka Tashiro (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                     0.10
 46. Richard Chassot (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia                      0.10
 47. Daisuke Sakuta (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                    0.10
 48. Kairat Baigudinov (Kaz) Kazakstan                                   0.10
 49. Susumu Oikawa (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                          0.10
 50. Keita Seino (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                       0.10
 51. Taiji Tanaka (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                            0.10
 52. Frank McCormack (USA) Saturn                                        0.10
 53. Takahiro Yamada (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                         0.10
 54. Yoshiyuki Abe (Jap) Shimano Racing                                  0.10
 55. Hideyuki Nishiyama (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                            0.10
 56. Jong-Jae Kim (Kor) Korea                                            0.10
 57. Shinji Suzuki (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                           0.10
 58. Naofumi Imanishi (Jap) Shimano Racing                               0.10
 59. Ryan Russell (NZ) New Zealand                                       0.10
 60. Ken Hasikawa (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                         0.10
 61. Nobuhiro Mashimo (Jap) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures                0.10
 62. Grzegorz Wajs (Pol) Mroz                                            0.10
 63. Daisuke Nakayama (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                         0.10
 64. Sergey Lavrenenko (Kaz) Kazakstan                                   0.10
 65. Darren Murray (NZ) New Zealand                                      0.10
 66. Vladim Kravchenko (Kaz) Kazakstan                                   0.10
 67. Chris Wherry (USA) Saturn                                           0.10
 68. Hans-Kurt Brand (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia                      0.10
 69. Shinji Ikeda (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                            0.10
 70. Yasunori Kato (Jap) Inoac B-CKS IRC (Jap)                           0.10
 71. Naokiyo Hashisako (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                      0.10
 72. Adham Sbeih (USA) Saturn                                            0.10
 73. Benoit Luminet (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures                  0.10
 74. In Chan Park (Kor) Korea                                            0.10
 75. Yasuhiro Nakajima (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                             0.10
 76. Makio Madarame (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                         0.10
 77. Ho-Sung Cho (Kor) Korea                                             0.10
 78. Kazuya Okazaki (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                                0.10
 79. Cristiano Colleoni (Ita) Team Polti                                 0.10
 80. Brendon Vesty (NZ) New Zealand                                      0.10
 81. Sebastien Laroche (Fra) Nippon Hodo-Besson Chaussures               0.10
 82. Scott Davis (Aus) Australia National Team                           0.10
 83. Hideto Yukinari (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                          0.10
 84. Jason Phillips (Aus) Die Continentale/Olympia                       0.10
 85. Ikki Yoneyama (Jap) Sumita Ravanello Pearlizumi                     0.10
 86. Daniel Paradis (Swi) Die Continentale/Olympia                       0.10
 87. Bjorn Glasner (Ger) Die Continentale/Olympia                        0.10
 88. Shinichi Fukushima (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                   0.10
 89. Tomoya Kanou (Jap) Shimano Racing                                   0.10
 90. Nathan O'Neill (Aus) Australia National Team                        0.10
 91. Masanari Tate (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                            0.10
 92. Akihiro Osawa (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                            0.10
 93. Kazuyuki Manabe (Jap) Miyata Subaru Racing                          0.10
 94. Masahiro Yasuhara (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                             0.10
 95. Gabriele Colombo (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                   0.10
 96. Min-woo Kong (Kor) Korea                                            0.10
 97. Denis Lunghi (Ita) Team Polti                                       0.10
 98. Germano Pierdomenico (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)               0.10
 99. Mitsuhiro Taninai (Jap) Cheblo Artnature (Jap)                      0.10
100. Mirco Crepaldi (Ita) Team Polti                                     0.10

Points:

  1. Moreno Di Biase (Ita) Cantina Tollo-Alexia (Ita)                       5
  2. Silvio Martinello (Ita) Team Polti                                     4
  3. Jacek Mickiewicz (Pol) Mroz                                            3
  4. Glen Mitchell (NZ) New Zealand                                         2
  5. Greame Miller (NZ) New Zealand                                         1

Sprints:

  1. Osamu Sumida (Jap) Shimano Racing                                     10
  2. Glen Mitchell (NZ) New Zealand                                         5
  3. Osamu Kurimura (Jap) Team JPCA (Jap)                                   4
  4. Dariusz Wojciechowski (Pol) Mroz                                       3
  5. Tomokazu Fujino (Jap) Bridgestone Anchor (Jap)                         1
  6. Brian Walton (Can) Saturn                                              1

Graeme Miller Reports

Today started off on a bad note - as we headed out of the hotel to ride to the start it was raining! It cleared up in time for us to have a dry race thank you rain god. The pace was slow from the start which was nice as most of us had only arrived the day before from long flights. Polti had Martinello, Cantina Tollo had Di Biase, Saturn had Frank McCormack, so one and all were keen for a field sprint. With a tricky finish - a sharp left 500m from the line, it was going to be fun to say the least. Polti and Cantina Tollo had the pace on in the last 2km for their sprinters so it was hang on and hope going into the last turn. Both Glen and I were in the mix with a km to go. Exiting the last turn Martinello and Di Biase stayed hard right and trapped most of us on the barrier. Glen was a little further back and got a clean run up the left to finish 4th I was 5th after freeing myself from a very tight squeeze. So at the line it was Di Biase, Martinello, Mickiewicz (Mroz),Glen and I. Great result for New Zealand on day one.