5th Tour of Eritrea - NE

Eritrea, March 18-27, 2005

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Stage 4 - March 22: Masawa - Asmara, 115km

The Opportunist

The Tour of Eritrea's fourth stage was its second consecutive day in the mountains, this time a 115 km ascent from sea level to 7700 ft. The 74 starters were blessed with overcast skies on the Red Sea flats and cool cloudy weather as they ascended the escarpment; perfect climbing conditions.

Before the race Muse Tekleab (Telecom), fifth on GC, confided that his team's strategy would be to ignite the race with 80 kilometres to go; and true to his word Telecom initiated a break of ten riders near the base of the climb at Dongolo Sotto. Seven teams were represented in the move, including Muse Tekleab, Stage one winner Michael Mishgena (Telecom) and Beyene Negassi (Red Sea), second overall. On the steep slopes of Dongolo Sotto Michael Misghena unleashed a furious attack that immediately gained him a small gap and cracked the weaker riders in the break. Pedaling like a hummingbird, the man they call 'Botero' built up a lead of almost ten minutes, in the process snatching first place in two mountain sprints.

Behind him the remains of the break were picked up by the strong climbers, led by none other than the race leader Michael Tuku (Telecom), but with 20 km to race several small groups had formed, with Tuku leading a pack that included Negasse Beyene and Malacai Kassai (Telecom) at four minutes behind 'Botero'. Lurking at the back of this group was a man who lived at the rear of the first group, Michael Tesfayohanes (Hidri). Realising that Tuku was stalling for his mate and with less than 12km to race he slipped out of the shadows at the Alborobo section of the climb pushing his 53x16. Michael Tuku, the race's strong man to this point was immediately dropped, and only Israel Abraham, Mateos Zerai, and Negasse (all Red Sea riders) were able to follow.

Ahead, Michael Mishgena's brilliant climbing had become diminished by fatigue, although he held on to hopes of earning the stage victory. With less than 1.5km to go he was passed by Michael Tesfayohanes and despite fighting to hold his wheel 'Botero' was no match for the fresher Hidri man in the sprint. It was an opportunistic win by a savvy rider and it revealed cracks in mighty Telecom's heretofore seemingly invincible armour. For the first time since the opening Prologue, Telecom contributed only one rider to the podium and although they still hold the first four spots on GC, other teams like Red Sea, As.be.co and Adulis served notice today that the race is far from over.

Erik Ruesing (Marco Polo) suffered a flat tyre on the fast run-up to Dongolo Sotto and was never able to reattach. "I was completely demolished" he said, adding that sometimes it's a case of "one blow and you're out." Although he did not complete the stage, Eritrean Federation rules allow for foreign riders to continue the race at the discretion of the race director. Erik, therefore, will be on hand for the 237 km stage from Asmara to Barentu on Thursday. Tomorrow is a rest day.

Note: The Tour of Eritrea is decided on a points system rather than on overall time. Points awarded for mountains sprints, primes, and stage finishes are tallied to create the General Classification. The following colors denote the jerseys and their significance: Yellow - race leader, Red - mountains points, and Blue - sprint points.

Results

1 Michael Tesfayohanes (Hidri)                11 pts
2 Michael Mishgena (Telecom Eritrea)           9
3 Israel Abraham (Red Sea)                     8
4 Mateos Zerai (Red Sea)                       7
5 Aklilou Haile (Adulis)                       6
6 Essayas Weldetinsae (Asbeco)                 5
7 Abrham Haile (Telecom Eritrea)               4
8 Bereket Petros (Debub)                       3
9 Yonas Zeray (Telecom Eritrea)                2
10 Abrham Belay (Debub)                        1

Mountains

First Mountain

1 Michael Mishgena (Telecom Eritrea)           7 pts
2 Efrem Abrham (Asbeco)                        5
3 Solomon Habte (Adulis)                       4
4 Israel Abraham (Red Sea)                     3
5 Matiwos Zeray (Red Sea)                      2
6 Aklilou Haile (Adulis)                       1

Second Mountain

1 Michael Mishgena (Telecom Eritrea)           7 pts
2 Efrem Abrham (Asbeco)                        5
3 Meron Russom (Asbeco)                        4
4 Beyene Negasi (Red Sea)                      3
5 Muse Tekleab (Telecom Eritrea)               2
6 Abrham Haile (Telecom Eritrea)               1
 
General Classification after stage 4 (Top 13)
 
1 Michael Tuku (Telecom Eritrea)              38 pts
2 Michael Mishgena (Telecom Eritrea)          37
3 Muse Tekleab (Telecom Eritrea)              29
4 Malacai Kassai (Telecom Eritrea)            23
5 Israel Abraham (Red Sea)                    18
6 Matiwos Zeray (Red Sea)                     14
6 Simon Semere (Asbeco)                       14
6 Aklilu Haile (Adulis)                       13
9 Essayas Weldetinsae (Asbeco)                13
9 Micheal Tesfahanes (Hidri)                  12
11 Abrham Haile (Telecom Eritrea)             12
12 Beyene Negasi (Red Sea)                    12
13 Meron Russom (Asbeco)                      12

Mountain Classification

1 Micheal Misgena (Telecom Eritrea)           22 pts
2 Mussie Tecleab (Telecom Eritrea)            17
3 Beyene Negasi (Red Sea)                     12
4 Efrem Abrham (Asbeco)                       10
5 Melake Kahsay (Tele)                         7

Teams Classification

1 Telecom Eritrea                            110 pts
2 Asbeco                                      44
3 Red Sea                                     30
4 Adulis                                      22
5 Hidri                                       11
6 Debub                                        4
7 Wina                                         2
8 Zula                                         1