Tour of Guangxi

The Tour of Guangxi (officially known as the GREE-Tour of Guangxi for sponsorship purposes) is an annual professional cycling stage race held in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. The race consists of multi-stage and is part of the UCI World Tour. The event will pass through a mix of metropolitan areas and stunning countryside scenery over six days of racing.[1] In addition, the race also includes a women's race.[2]

Tour of Guangxi
Race details
DateOctober
RegionGuangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
English nameGREE-Tour of Guangxi
Local name(s)格力·环广西公路自行车世界巡回赛 (in Chinese)
DisciplineRoad
CompetitionUCI World Tour
TypeStage race
OrganiserPeople's Government Of The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Wanda Group
Race directorOlivier Senn
Web sitewww.tourofguangxi.com.cn
History
First edition2017 (2017)
Editions3 (as of 2019)
First winner Tim Wellens (BEL)
Most winsNo repeat winners
Most recent Enric Mas (ESP)

The Tour of Guangxi, in China's southern autonomous Guangxi region bordering Vietnam, is the second World Tour race to be held in China, following in the footstep of the Tour of Beijing which was held between 2011 and 2014.[3] It also marks the UCI's return to the Far East after six years.[4]

History

In 1 December 2016, Union Cycliste Internationale, Wanda Group and People's Government Of The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region signed an agreement in Beijing, which said that authorized by the Union Cycliste Internationale, the GREE-Tour of Guangxi is a top ranking race organized by the local government and China's Wanda Group since October, 2017.

The first Gree Tour of Guangxi inaugurates on 19 October in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region with the participation of the 18 elite teams recognized by the UCI. It is also the last stage of 2017 UCI World Tour.

The race, from October 19-24, will start from the seaside city of Beihai, passing Qinzhou, Nanning, Liuzhou and eventually ending in Guilin. The Tour of Guangxi comprises six stages with a total length of 940km, running through Guangxi from the south to the north, crossing plains, hills and mountains, the Beibu Gulf area, the rivers and mountains around the Lijiang River, the capital city of the autonomous region, Nanning, and the historical site of Liuzhou. It will showcase the spectacular natural scenes, historical culture and ethnic customs of Guangxi.

In addition including a women's race. 2017 UCI Cycling Gala also will be held in the Chinese city of Guilin.[5]

The first three stages are flat stages, and Fernando Gaviria, a world-top sprinter from Quick-Step Floors, won the champions of all the three stages, becoming the most popular superstar among the audiences. In the fourth stage in Nanning-Nongla Scenic Area, Tim Wellens from Team Lotto Soudal, who won the champion of Tour of Benelux twice, sprung up and won his first champion of climbing stage of Tour of Guangxi, and became the new owner of red jersey. In the 212.2km Liuzhou-Guilin stage of "Mountain Queen", Dylan Groenewegen from Team LottoNL-Jumbo won the champion. However, Tim Wellens still managed to obtain his red jersey before the last stages. Thus, in the last stage, Tim Wellens finally won the first grand champion of "UCI WorldTour · Tour of Guangxi".

Winners

General classification
Year Country Rider Team
2017  Belgium Tim Wellens Lotto–Soudal
2018  Italy Gianni Moscon Team Sky
2019  Spain Enric Mas Deceuninck–Quick-Step

Points classification
Year Country Rider Team
2017  Colombia Fernando Gaviria Quick-Step Floors
2018  Netherlands Fabio Jakobsen Quick-Step Floors
2019  Germany Pascal Ackermann Bora–Hansgrohe

Mountains classification
Year Country Rider Team
2017  Italy Daniel Oss BMC Racing Team
2018   Switzerland Silvan Dillier AG2R La Mondiale
2019  Poland Tomasz Marczyński Lotto–Soudal

Youth classification
Year Country Rider Team
2017  France Julian Alaphilippe Quick-Step Floors
2018  Italy Gianni Moscon Team Sky
2019  Spain Enric Mas Deceuninck–Quick-Step

Teams classification
Year Team
2017 BMC Racing Team
2018 Astana
2019 Lotto–Soudal

Tour of Guangxi Women's Elite World Challenge
Year Country Rider Team
2017  Italy Maria Vittoria Sperotto Bepink–Cogeas
2018  Cuba Arlenis Sierra Astana Women's Team
2019  Australia Chloe Hosking Alé–Cipollini

The 2019 edition of the Tour of Guangxi Women's WorldTour will take place on 22 October 2019 and cover 145km around Guilin.[6]

References
  1. "UCI confirms new Chinese WorldTour race the Tour of Guangxi for 2017 - Cycling Weekly". Cycling Weekly. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  2. "UCI to add Chinese race to 2017 WorldTour calendar - Cycling Weekly". Cycling Weekly. 9 November 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  3. "Tour of Guangxi added to 2017 WorldTour calendar | Cyclingnews.com". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  4. "UCI confirms new Chinese WorldTour race the Tour of Guangxi for 2017 - Cycling Weekly". Cycling Weekly. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  5. "Tour of Guangxi added to 2017 WorldTour calendar | Cyclingnews.com". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  6. "Guilin Circuit Race". Tour of Guangxi. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
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