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Dominique Ruyssen wins 1588 Ceribian Tour
By Richard W. Wallace
Published: Nueva 26, 1587


Dominique Ruyssen won his first Ceribian Tour after finishing twice in the podium.


Etora, Ceribia - Dominique Ruyssen (MTS-Biassoni) won the 1588 Ceribian Tour, his first Grand Tour in his cycling career. He had finished as runner-up twice previously, in 1583 and 1584.

The Ceribian Tour didn't start well for Ruyssen as his team lost 43 seconds in the team time-trial on stage 1, which was won by his former team Télecon Cycling. After two flat stages won by sprinters Richard Malone (Dido-Great Life) and Sven-Ole Wieth respectively, the first mountain stage come early than usual this year, on stage 4. The stage was won by the previous season winner, Oslanburgan Grzegorz Sutzkever (KDK-Magram), who beat to climber Hoga Toru (Futara Team) after an attack of his own teammate Mukhran Chavchavadze. Twenty seconds later arrived Ruyssen along Almas Cingur (KyrzAir), Nicolaj Bruun (Luft Wurberg), and Rajko Kryzanek (Iskra Team) allowing to climb to the 7th place in the general classification, one minute behid Sutzkever who took the golden jersey.

The next stage was came with a big change in the general classification, as 21-year old Goldecian climber Caleb Foster (Ogo Cycling) won the stage and took the golden jersey, in which Ruyssen couldn't follow the path from the main group, which included his teammate Jose Cardoso, and finished one minute and thirty seconds after Foster, while Sutzkever lost almost three minutes that day.

Foster wasn't able to keep the leadership for long, though, as he suffered a minor crash in the next stage, a 247-km hilly stage which included cobblestone roads. The stage was won by Richard Malone (Dido-Great Life) and Eskkyan climber Amaury Servan (Rolareux-Vançotte). The next three stages were again decided in a mass sprint, without important incidences in the general classification, and were won by Saratovian sprinter Bohdan Staryk (Iskra Team), Batavian Frederik de Jong (Lentar-RIFF), and Sven-Ole Wieth, the Oslanburgan proving to be the most serious rival for the Florinthian sprinter for the Points classification.

The high mountain returned on stage 10, which was won by East Tambossan climber Mutara Gasana (Anzcell Cycling). The young Goldecian climber Caleb Foster took again the general classification, leading it with fifty-second seconds ahead of Kyrzbekistani Almas Cingur. The next stage was won by Vallish sprinter Yves Mirabeau (Rolareux-Vançotte). After the first rest day, Foster would lose the golden jersey on stage 12, in a 24-km individual time-trial stage which was won by Keszarian Árpad Szebehely (Dido-Great Life) with Nylander Lars Brunewald leading the general classification.

Richard Malone defeated his main rival in the sprint, the Oslanburgan Sven-Ole Wieth the next day, a predictable stage in which the peloton seemed to prepare and rest of the longest stage in this Ceribian Tour, a high mountain stage between the towns of Mvari and Tamani. After a far-away attack, Mutara Gasana (Anzcell Cycling) won his second mountain stage this Ceribian Tour, while the leader Nylander Lars Brunewald arrived more than three minutes after Gasana, becoming Gasana the new leader of the general classification.

On stage 15, Richard Malone (Dido-Great Life) won his third individual stage this Ceribian Tour, increasing his lead in the Points classification. Without further changes in the general classification, the peloton was able to contemplate the beautiful landscapes of the eastern Ceribian region, which would include the next three high mountain stages, expected to be crucial to decide the winner of the tour.

On stage 16, a long breakaway was formed, of which Dominique Ruyssen, Almas Cingur (KyrzAir), Eskkyan Pierre Bonchamps (BataVelo), and Mykola Tarasenko (Nenergo Cycling) were the only survivors at the beginning of last climb. Tarasenko won the stage after dropping his rivals in the last kms, while Ruyssen climbed to the second position to the general classification.

The next day, Ruyssen and Cingur were again two of the most active riders in the last climb. The 25-year old Kyrzbekistani climber won the stage, allowing him to take both the Mountain classification and Youth classification jerseys, and to climb to the third place in the general classification. Leader Mutara Gasana seemed to pay the efforts made in the last Tour de Valland, in which Gasana finished second behind Gehennan champion Jan Daxenberger, as Ruyssen reduced Gasana's lead in the general classification another minute.

Following the second rest day, the Ceribian Tour prepared for its last mountain stage. Again, Bonchamps and Cingur were two of the main protagonists of the day with far-away attacks. The stage was won by Mordvanian Walentyn Lauterpacht (Mordvelo) who easily outpace Pierre Bonchamps (BataVelo) and Oslanburgan Nicolaj Bruun (Luft Wurberg) in the final metres. Two minutes later arrived Ruyssen group, who decreased Gasana's lead on the general classification to merely twenty-four seconds, a favourable margin in view of the time-trial stage on stage 20. Pierre Bonchamps was next on the general classification fourty-eigh seconds behind, outplacing Almas Cingur who was next only one second later.

Another battle between Malone and Wieth followed on stage 19, this time was Sven-Ole Wieth who took the victory after beating the Florinthian and Frederik de Jong in the sprint, winning his third individual stage this Ceribian Tour. His second position on the stage allowed Richard Malone (Dido-Great Life) to secure him to win the Point classification for seventh time.

In the final ITT on stage 20, which crossed some of the main streets of the Ceribian capital city, Nerysian Ludger Beltz (MTS-Biassoni) won the stage, with a time only two seconds behind Mordvanian Anton Lencek (Mordvelo). Despite a good time-trial for someone who is not exactly a time-trial specialist, it became obvious that Gasana was not going to keep the golden jersey. Dominique Ruyssen ended fourteen seconds behind Beltz on the stage, winning the 1588 Ceribian Tour with a lead of thirty-seven seconds ahead of Gasana, who finished second in an excellent season in which he ended as runner-up in both Grand Tours, only disappointing after winning the Tour de Valland the previous year.

More exciting and unpredictable was the fight for the third place in the podium. Pierre Bonchamps (BataVelo) was able to defend it, increasing his lead over Cingur by another fourteen seconds. Although visibly disappointed, Almas Cingur (KyrzAir) could find a small consolation in winning both the Mountain and Youth classification.