Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
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Current racing:
- February 7 - 11: Tour of Oman
Upcoming racing:
- February 13 - 14: Vuelta a la Region de Murcia
- February 13 - 15: Tour de la Provence
Latest completed racing:
- February 4 - 8: Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
- February 4 - 8: Etoile de Bessèges
- February 6: Muscat Classic
- January 28 - February 1: Challenge Ciclista Mallorca
- January 31-February 1: Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
- February 1: GP Cycliste de Marseille - La Marseilaise
- January 29: Surf Coast Classic Race cancelled
- January 17 - 25: Tour Down Under
- January 25: Classica Comunitat Valenciana 1969-GP Valencia
- January 1: GP Sven Nys
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We posted the report from the race organizer with the results.
Here's the report from Team Groupama-FDJ United:
The fourth and penultimate stage of the Tour of Oman held no surprises this Tuesday on the road to Sohar. After 146 kilometres of racing, a bunch sprint — as expected — decided the winner. Thibaud Gruel once again tried to get involved in the mix but had to settle for 17th place due to a tricky positioning.
For this fourth stage, the Tour of Oman offered a rather atypical route, completely flat along the seafront, with no significant relief and barely 150 metres of elevation gain over 147 kilometres of racing. Any outcome other than a sprint therefore seemed inconceivable, and only two riders actually made up the day’s breakaway. “There was just a bit of wind, which meant that the peloton was quite stretched out”, explained Thierry Bricaud. “However, it wasn’t strong enough to create echelons, so it ended up being a fairly calm day.” The peloton even waited until the final three kilometres to reel in the two fugitives, before the expected sprint unfolded.
Erlend Blikra wins Tour of Oman stage four.
“The approach itself wasn’t too bad,” Thierry added. “The idea was not to be on the front row going into the corner located 1.5 kilometres from the finish. However, the guys were on the left-hand side, and since that was opposite to the wind direction, they unfortunately couldn’t find an opening in the final kilometre to go for the sprint. Thibaud therefore remained in the back.”
Starting from a long way back, the young Frenchman finished in 17th place, with the victory going to Erlend Blikra. “Aside from that, everyone had a pretty good day,” Thierry concluded. “Tomorrow will be the final stage with the finish at Green Mountain. Rémy will try to do a strong final climb, and a breakaway could potentially go far. It will all depend on its composition, and we’ll need to stay alert.”
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Here's the Oman Tour report from Team Soudal Quick-Step:
The fourth stage of the Middle Eastern race wasn’t only the shortest of this edition, it was also the last opportunity for the sprinters to fight for victory before the GC showdown on the Green Mountain. However, this didn’t prevent Warre Vangheluwe from attacking right from the moment the peloton left behind the short neutral zone in Al Sawadi Beach.
Warre Vangheluwe winning stage four of the 4th stage of the 2024 4 Days of Dunkirk. Sirotti photo
The Belgian, who is in his third season with Soudal Quick-Step, was joined by one other rider, and together with him they went on to open a two-minute maximum gap on the peloton, where several teams joined hands in order to keep the duo on a tight leash. Staying true to his nature, Warre produced a great effort in the break, despite knowing their chances of making it were slim, and showed great determination on these long, flat roads, remaining off the front for three hours and coming agonizingly close to the finish.
After the catch was made with just four kilometers to go, it came down to a bunch sprint. The victory went to Erlend Blikra (Uno-X Mobility), while Stan Van Tricht finished stage four as the first Soudal Quick-Step rider home.
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And here’s The Tour of Oman report from Patryk Goszczurny’s Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
In the fourth stage of the Tour of Oman, Patryk Goszczurny launched a duo attack together with Warre Vangheluwe. The duo was only caught by the peloton in the final kilometers. With that effort, Goszczurny secured the golden jersey for the combativity classification.
Patryk Goszczurny after stage one of the 2026 Tour of Oman in the Best Young Rider's jersey.
Day four featured a flat stage between Al Sawadi Beach and Sohar. The riders covered 146 kilometers along the coastline of the Gulf of Oman. Team Visma | Lease a Bike lined up with three riders at the start. Bart Lemmen was forced to abandon the race after his crash in the third stage.
As in the first two stages, Goszczurny was eager to form the early breakaway. The 19-year-old Pole from Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development attacked straight from kilometer zero. Goszczurny, the leader in the combativity classification, was joined by Vangheluwe. The two quickly built up a solid advantage.
Along the way, points were available twice at the intermediate sprints.
Goszczurny crossed the line first on both occasions, further strengthening his lead in the combativity classification. The peloton had its hands full with the two leaders, who were only reeled in with two kilometers remaining. In the final sprint, Erland Blikra proved to be the fastest. The other Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development talent, Aldo Taillieu, sprinted to an impressive 12th place on his 20th birthday.
After the finish, Goszczurny reacted with satisfaction: “I once again enjoyed a day in the breakaway. It wasn’t easy, but we gave it our all to go for the stage win. I will definitely take this experience with me into the future. Going all-in for the golden jersey was a goal, so I’m happy I was able to secure it today. I can look back on four strong stages. Tomorrow, a tough finale of this race still awaits us.”
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