Olav Kooij secured a remarkable victory for Visma-Lease a Bike in the opening stage of the 2025 Tour of Oman. He clinched first place in a dramatic sprint finish at Bimmah Sinkhole on Saturday. The win marked Kooij’s first of the season and his 37th career triumph. He also claimed the inaugural red jersey.
The 177.7-kilometer stage began in Bausher and concluded at the coastal Bimmah Sinkhole. It unfolded under the intense desert heat. A thrilling finale saw Kooij outpace Pavel Bittner (Picnic PostNL) and Erlend Blikra (Uno-X Mobility) in the final meters. He sealed the victory despite a fast-charging peloton during the 2025 Tour of Oman.
An early breakaway formed with four riders—Mohammed Al Wahibi and Said Al Rahbi from the Oman national team, Rodrigo Álvarez (Burgos Burpellet), and Kane Richards (Roojai Insurance). They built a lead of over three minutes. However, Visma-Lease a Bike controlled the pace and gradually pulled back the breakaway as the 2025 Tour of Oman race entered its final 50 kilometers.
Team tactics played a pivotal role in Kooij’s success, as he followed Fernando Gaviria’s (Movistar) wheel into the final sprint.
“We aimed to win the stage, and we took control,” Kooij said after the race. “The team set me up perfectly in the last 500 meters, and I launched my sprint at the ideal moment.”
Despite the absence of key rider Jørgen Nordhagen, who missed the race due to illness, Visma-Lease a Bike celebrated an outstanding stage win at the 2025 Tour of Oman. This victory followed strong performances in the Muscat Classic. The team showed their sprinting potential there.
As the peloton charged toward the finish, the final sprint became a battle for positioning. Teams like Picnic PostNL, Movistar, and Uno-X worked to set up their sprinters. Still, Kooij’s late burst was too strong to overcome during the intense final stretch of the 2025 Tour of Oman stage.
“I could follow Gaviria’s wheel and use it to my advantage,” Kooij explained. “We’re leading the race now, and it feels great to have this win.”
With this victory, Kooij now leads the 2025 Tour of Oman, wearing the red jersey heading into Sunday’s stage. His win adds to an already impressive career, including his 2024 Giro d’Italia stage victory.
The 14th edition of the Tour of Oman began with 120 riders. Visma-Lease a Bike’s Jørgen Nordhagen and Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team’s Harm Vanhoucke missed the start. The race began at 11:42 AM under the blazing sun of Bausher, just outside Muscat.
